Vampire Academy: Aftermath
by Simlead
Summary: Something I brought over from the previous website I was on. Rated T for the nature of the books and various adult words/mentions throughout. 'Rose Hathaway has everything she wants, her life is perfect - or is it? Nothing happens without consequences.' Set after 'Last Sacrifice' because I'd only just finished 'Bloodlines' when I wrote and completed it. Main pairings listed inside.
1. Prologue

**A/N: This is a Vampire Academy fanfiction piece that I wrote and completed over a year and a half ago. So the chapters will be slightly shorter than the length I write at now. I'm bringing it over here from the previous place it was posted because I've 'based' myself here, now. :) I hope you enjoy it, and please review if you do.**

**Like it says in the description, this is set after Last Sacrifice and some of it is during Bloodlines. So, major spoilers for that and the rest of the series. Anything that happened in The Golden Lily and The Indigo Spell don't have an effect on this because I hadn't read them when I wrote it.**

**The main pairings are:**

**Rose/Dimitri**

**Janine/Abe**

**Lissa/Christian**

**Mia/Eddie *Small Amounts**

**I own nothing in Vampire Academy, sadly, and I'm just playing with Richelle Mead's toys.**

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_Prologue_

People say I live my happily ever after. I disagree. I'm Rose Hathaway, guardian and best friend of the teenage Moroi Queen Vasilisa Dragomir-Lissa for short. I'm also the girlfriend of a tall, bad-ass russian god named Dimitri Belikov, guardian of Lord Christian Ozera. Sparky still hasn't got used to that title. But that's beside the point. The point is that while Jill Mastrano Dragomir (Lissa's half-sister that we-Dimitri and I-brought back to court in the summer) is in hiding, everyone seems to think we're living in peaceful luxury, apart from the occasional riot. Right? Wrong.

My first issue is Lissa and Christian. She's always stressing, and I spend half of my time on the royal guard trying to get her to relax. That's why I'm lucky to have so much back up; just in case Strigoi attack while I'm trying to talk her into having a massage in a visit back to court. So, you're probably wondering how Christian's part of the problem. He's spending his days back at court, running some kind of offensive magic club; one that goes on every day, so he rarely emails Liss. Unfortunately for me, I'm the one that gets the brunt of her anxiety. The joys of being a guardian.

The second problem I have is a little more deep-set. Remember what I said back in my senior year about Dhampir-Dhampir relationships being frowned upon by Moroi society? Then you must remember that I'm now in one with Dimitri. Nobody knows we were together at the academy except a handful of people; Lissa, Christian, Adrian... Adrian Ivashkov. He's another problem. Apart from the fact that most people are just waiting for me to do something stupid with Dimitri, I've still not managed to find the time, or the courage, to apologize to him. I can senselessly kill in a Strigoi attack but not face my ex. Great.

And if I didn't have enough to juggle, my parents are stirring things up. And when I say 'things' I mean Dimitri. God only knows what'll happen to him on that hunting trip...

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**A/N: How was it? I apologize for the prologue being so short, and for it all being a 'block' of writing.**


	2. Chapter 1

**A/N: Here's the first chapter, I hope this is satisfactory. :) Again, it's directly transferred from another website so it's exactly as it was on there, minus a few pages breaks stuffed in. And, again, none of the characters, places or other features of VA belong to Richelle Mead. Not me, unfortunately. :(**

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"Morning, Roza," Dimitri smiled at me.

"Morning, Comrade," I greeted him through a yawn. _I could get used to seeing that smile every morning._

"Time to get up," he told me as he pushed off his side of the bed covers and rose to his feet (trust me, that's a lot of rising), the serene expression still present on his face. I knew it'd be replaced soon with his guardian mask and - no doubt - 'zen life lessons' voice.

"Aww, why?" I moaned, my body protesting to the absence of his warm body beside mine. It was late evening-morning for Moroi and Dhampirs - and the sun seemed to have only just set and left the sky a grey-blue sort of colour. The type you get in the middle of the human day when you just know it's going to rain. Let's just hope it rains on our parade-literally. Why, you ask?

"Because it's my hunting trip with your parents. You wouldn't want me to be fed to the vulture's _alone_, would you?" he joked.

"Of course not," I muttered. Reluctantly, I dragged myself from the bed and into something that could probably pass as hunting gear. After Lissa's coronation, my mum and Abe had asked Dimitri to join them on a hunting trip, probably to interrogate him about us. And boy would they be angry when they found out about what we did while he was still my mentor. In our minds, it was all voluntary-even what happened in the cabin before Dimitri was turned Strigoi. But the law doesn't exactly see it that way. So if the law doesn't, neither will my parents.

"Roza?" Dimtri asked, pulling me back to reality. I must have frozen, because he's looking at me concerned.

"Comrade," I replied, taking in his outfit. "Wait... No fair! Your clothes are better than mine!"

"Courtesy of Lord Ozera," he smirked in an imitation of Christian and bowed gracefully.

"Christian," I corrected him. "Let's go before my mum decides it's a good idea to break down the door after ringing the bell five times."

"Oh, Rose," he chuckled, his arm sliding around my waist. Sure enough, when we opened the door of our court accommodation, there stood my parents. Mum wore a loose V-neck and a tough-looking black jacket, the kind that make you wonder whether she'd been shot while wearing it. One hand rested on the hip of her trousers, the other on a firearm. In other words, her ticket to kill Dimtri. My eyes flitted from her semi-impatient expression to my father's mischievous one. He, however, seemed to have no problem revealing the fact he'd shoot Dimitri at a moment's notice of hearing about him hurting me, like some kind of Turkish-Russian mafia. He certainly wasn't going to like what happened at Galina's estate.

"Mum, Old man," I smiled at them, leaning against the door frame.

"Little girl. You ready?" Abe asked, gesturing to mine and Dimitri's outfits. I nodded. "And I take it you're joining us?"

"Yeah. Just to make sure you don't kill my boyfriend. Don't expect me to shoot much," I replied as I pulled what appeared to be a spare firearm from his pocket.

"Rosemarie! Put it back, that's your father's gun. At least _ask_ first," my mum scolded.

"What?! Do you want me to be defenceless? I mean, what if..." I trailed off. What threats could we face that I'd be able to neutralize with a gun? Rabid animals. Nah, better not-my mum looked about a 3 on the anger scale of 1 to 10, and I was _supposed _to be trying not to push her above a 5.

"Just leave it, Janine, I've got another one. Let's get going," Abe cut in. He might be a mafia-dude but he still knows how to control Mum's temper. Thank god for that.

* * *

The walk to our hunting site for the day was short and silent, the standard definition of uneventful. We were travelling on foot seen as it was only a five-to-ten minute walk from our accommodation to the woods just outside the wards. The clearing housed a small pool of water about the size of a pond; something to attract animals. There were signs this part of the woods had been used before. Like discarded bullets and corpses of useless animals that had been shot but deemed not worth the hassle of being carried home. We set up camp - not literally, I didn't intend on staying there past lunch-and waited. My mother was the first to speak.

"So, Belikov, how much do you love my daughter on a scale of one to ten?" she prodded, her eye on something weaving through the trees.

"Eleven," Dimitri replied, without hesitation. I don't know how he managed to keep his face serious as he said it. I know I had to stifle a snort.

"And would you ever leave her?" she asked, aiming at the scampering creature.

"Never," he emphasized the one word like it was the most important one in the world. Mum nodded in an almost approving way.

"How long have you been together? You didn't seem to be head over heels when I busted you out of here," Abe commented. "And what about at the academy? Were you an item when you were still her mentor?"

_Hello, 'her' is right next to you! _I mentally hissed at them. Ignorant much?

"Since...Rose left Adrian," Dimitri replied. And just like that the guardian mask slipped into place. He was cracking.

"You didn't answer my question, Son, what about the academy?" Abe persisted. I shot a worried glance at Dimitri, whose eyes were fixated on my old man.

"Yes," he finally replied, followed by my mother's raised eyebrow. "Yes, we were together. For a short while."

"W-" Mum began in semi-outrage, only to be cut off by Abe.

"I see. Were you both consenting...people?" he asked.

"Yes. Rose?" Dimitri looked at me, hand outstretched. I took it, nodding firmly.

_At least they didn't ask if we had sex y-_

"Did you sleep with her?" no sooner had the thought crossed my mind that it came out my mother's mouth in the form of a question. Was I missing something here? Or had some idiot decided to bind me to my own mother. "I'm waiting for an answer."

"Yes," Dimitri croaked out.

"What?!" she exclaimed, her face the perfect picture of shock and (unpleasant) surprise. And the latter wasn't one I often assigned to Janine Hathaway. "You did what?! You do realize she was your student, _Guardian Belikov_?"

"I-" Dimitri tried to speak, and I swear I saw him flinch at the way she spoke his name. Scorn and poison.

"We were-are-in love. You might see it as rape but we see it as _making_ love," I told her firmly.

"I agree," Abe nodded, surprisingly calm through our raised voices.

"Listen, Old Man- Wait, you agree?"

"Yes, Little Girl, I agree. I know how it feels to be controlled by love," he sent us a slither of a smile.

"Ibrahim!" Mum exclaimed, shifting her pinning gaze from us to him. "They were student and teacher! Surely you don't condone this!"

"I'm not condoning anything. I'm just saying I believe our daughter's side of the tale," he shrugged, before adding, "and I really think you should calm down.

"I can't believe... Fine," she sighed, pulling the trigger on her gun. A bang startled us all as the rabbit that she'd shot fell to the floor and she stalked off to retrieve it. Meanwhile, my father turned to Dimitri.

"I meant what I said, you know. I believe you love each other. But if you ever hurt her, you'll be minus one vital body part the night after I hear about it, you understand?" Dimitri nodded vigorously and I rolled my eyes. My bad-ass russian god scared out of his pants by my mobster father? Who would've guessed?

"Yes, Mr Mazur," he replied solemnly.

"Call me Abe."

"Abe. Right," he nodded again, this time slowly. That's when we heard it.

"Ibrahim!"

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**A/N: How was it? Let me know in a review, if you like! I'll be posting the new chapter very soon (that means I'll be copying and pasting it over here, guys).**


	3. Chapter 2

**A/N: Thanks to you if you reviewed last chapter. I'm going to post guest review replies in my author notes until it's complete. Then, I won't be able to reply unless you communicate through a registered person, get your own account, or happen to review on one of my other fics.**

**Tammy Dmitrieva - Por supuesto que tenía un traductor. :P Gracias por revisar, me alegro que te haya gustado! / Of course I had a translator. :P Thanks for reviewing, I'm glad you enjoyed it!**

**As usual, I own nothing. It belongs to Richelle Mead.**

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In all my life I had never really heard my mother yell that loud, and it hurt my ears. Badly. Not once in all the times she'd lectured me about having her duty to tend to had she raised her voice this much. In an instant, Dimitri and Abe had slipped into fighting mode beside me, and I cursed the loss of the abilities the bond gave me. What if there were Strigoi? My hand shot to my stake and I rounded the corner, lunging at a blur or sheet white skin and red-ringed eyes that leapt into my line of vision. He-it was male-effortlessly dodged, his deathly face sneering at me. He clawed at my shoulder, leaving three crimson trails stained into my t-shirt. The attack gave me an opening and I pressed forward-I was quick, but he was quicker. We wrestled further, back and forth, back and forth, before I finally plunged the silver into his chest. His body slumped and I yanked it back out, surveying my surroundings. A body similar to the one by my feet had fallen a few feet from where my mother stood, stake in hand, waiting for an opportunity to stab the Strigoi she fought. With a slither of worry, I took in the way it dwarfed her in size, both towering over her and covering twice as much ground with its muscular build and as a a result, blood trickled down her forehead. My faze snapped to Dimitri, who was fighting a smaller, leaner female. There wasn't much that was taller than Dimitri-whether it was Moroi, Dhampir, Strigoi, or Human. And Abe...where _was _he?

A thud to my right told me the girl had fallen. Good. I didn't like the next noise so much; a grunt and a lighter thud, followed by a frustrated shriek. I turned just in time to see my mum on the ground, struggling with her assailant, as Abe leapt out from the thick clusters of trees, throwing his entire weight at his target-the Strigoi.

"Dad!" I yelled. Annoying helpless, I watched as he tackled it fiercely. It clawed violently for a moment, reaching for his neck. Horror spiked within me, but was quelled as heat exploded around me. Light. Flames. In seconds it was over, and a pile of ashes was the only remnant of our opponent. A moan pulled my eyes away from Abe's ash-strewn appearance to where my mum was pushing herself into a sitting position. He hauled himself over to her and pressed one hand to the wound on her forehead, resting the other on her shoulder.

"Easy..." he told her. She simply nodded in reply, far too exhausted to do anything more, let alone slap his hand away. I felt a hand on my cheek and turned to its owner.

"Roza, is that...?" Dimitri trailed off, nodding to the bloody claw marks on my shoulder.

"No, it's not bad. It's nothing. It's those two that need the medical attention. Are you hurt?" I asked as my eyes swept over him. When they came back up to meet his, he shook his head.

"No. But we should get back soon. It was a bad idea to go outside the wards, we were lucky there were a few of them there," he shook his head and stood defensively beside me. He was right. The odds were good for us. We had three guardians and a fire user fighting against four Strigoi. But we could've been much less fortunate. We could've been travelling with a Moroi unwilling to use offensive magic, or there could've been more of them - Strigoi, that is. Abe had managed to convince Pavel, his guardian to take some time off, assured by the fact he was with three well-known, and skilled, guardians.

"Okay," I nod solemnly.

"Abe, I don't need help, I can walk just fine on my own," my mother complained. Apparently she'd recovered.

"Janine, you know that's a lie. You can barely walk straight with me supporting you, never mind on your own!" Abe protested. She shot him a glare only someone in our family could pull off but it didn't dissolve the concerned look on his face as she pulled away and limped forward on her own.

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A quarter of an hour later, we were back inside the wards, trudging away from gate security, when a high-pitched voice shouted across the courtyard.

"Rose! What happened?" Lissa asked, rushing towards us despite her heavy regal clothing and company of several guardians.

"Strigoi attack in the woods," I sighed, leaning gratefully against the arm Dimitri wrapped around me.

"Oh... Let's get you cleaned up," she said, and began to move in the direction of the clinic. I followed drowsily, watching tuning out of the argument my parents had struck up about whether my mother needed Abe to help her walk or not. Does she remind you of someone, by any chance?

The clinic was bright and clean, with neat rows of beds either side of the room. Lissa sat in a chair beside mine as a nurse cleaned and bandaged my shoulder wound.

"How did you get attacked? I thought you were just hunting...unless... You went outside the wards, didn't you?" she fussed, worried, exasperated, and frustrated all at once.

"We were fine, Liss. We took them easily," I insisted, massaging my forehead with my free hand.

"But Rose, what if there were more than that or-or..." she stopped, shook her head at me and sat back in her seat.

"Liss... Leave it."

"Okay. Do you and Dimitri want to join me and Christian for dinner? If they let you out by then, I mean," she said, standing up.

"Count me in, even if Sparky's there. What about you, Comrade?" I turned to Dimitri, who jumped a little, like he'd been stuck in thought.

"Sorry, what did you say, Rose?" he asked, smiling nervously at me from the bed to my left.

"Lissa wants to know if we're joining her and Sparky for dinner."

"Of course," he nodded, before he turned back to the nurse trying to treat the various cuts and bruises he'd acquired. "I'm fine. They'll heal by themselves," he told her firmly. She looked up at him with a 'you're a fool' expression but left anyway.

"I'll see you later then," Lissa smiled, and with that she was gone. I shuffled off of my bed and onto Dimitri's.

"So, Comrade, do you think my parents will kill you or not?" I asked with a small smirk.

"Well, I don't know... They don't look in a condition to-but they're your parents, why don't you tell me?"

"Normally, I'd say anyone with their injuries wouldn't be in the mood, but then again these are _my _parents," I laughed. Dimitri chuckled, and I felt the sound vibrate through his body into mine.

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My parents sat on a pair of beds in the distance. It turned out that we were all right-well, except my mum-Janine Hathaway was brought down by a head wound. Granted it was in the right place, of course... Anywhere else and she'd have been fine (but that probably wasn't a good thing considering her mood before). Now he wasn't concerned about her balance, Abe watched her grit her teeth and glare at the ceiling (and the poor nurses) with a certain satisfaction. I shook my head.

_They're parents, Rose, think. you've got to get it from somewhere, _I thought. _Attitude runs in the family._

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**A/N: Again, thanks for reading! Review if you enjoyed it or you have something to say. :)**


	4. Chapter 3

**A/N: I'm sorry for not updating sooner - I do have the whole, completed thing ready to copy and paste and I'm planning to post one or two chapters every week day. But I'm sorry for the brief gap in updating. :) I hope you're enjoying the story as much as I enjoyed writing it back then. Now, over to Rose and her friends.**

**Oh, wait, I own nothing, right? Ah, shucks... XD**

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For once, I wasn't the one imprisoned in the clinic while my friends went off to who-knows-where and did who-knows-what-especially Lissa. This time, it was my mum in there, and _I _was the one going off to who-knows-where and doing who-knows-what. And what was that, you ask? Joining Lissa and Christian for dinner, obviously. Personally I was hoping for a bit of a pre-party.

"Rose, you have to stop leaving things lying around like this-we don't have apartment janitors. At least not like they were in the dorms at the academy," Dimitri shook his head at me, swooping down to pick up one of my stray t-shirts.

"Don't tell me you don't enjoy picking up all my lacy underwear," I smirked as he straightened up, my hands clasped at the back of his neck. He groaned and shook his head, prying my hands from the back of his neck.

"Aww, no fair, Comrade," I pouted, and rested them on his chest. I took a step closer and watched his eyes as lust and sensibility battled within him. "Come on, we have some time to play, right?" I batted my eyelashes as lust won over.

"Of course, Roza..." he whispered. A moment later his lips descended over mine - and they brought heaven with them. It was slow and gentle at first, but soon picked up pace. When oxygen became absolutely necessary, we separated. "Okay, time to go," he said quickly, breaking away and stuffing my t-shirt in a drawer. I groaned, but followed him out of our apartment door nonetheless.

"Rose, come in!" Lissa smiled, opening the door for me and Dimitri. A guardian that had been guarding her door advanced into the room with us but she waved them off. "They're here, Chris!" Christian poked his head out of what I decided was the kitchen door and smirked.

"Hey Rosie. Hey Belikov," he said, laughter evident in his voice.

"Hey Sparky. Why don't I take care of your drink for you? I mean, you were so kind to call me Rosie," I retorted as he disappeared back into the room.

"If you wanted poison, Rose, you should've just asked me to give you some with your meal. I'd gladly do it," he teased. I rolled my eyes and took a seat at the-by royal standards-small dining table.

"So, did you have a safe trip here?" Lissa asked us as she took a seat beside me.

"Liss, we hardly ran into a band of Strigoi, or something. If we hadn't had a safe trip here would we actually _be _here?" I shook my head at her.

"You know what I mean, Rose, stop being...pendantic!"

"Not pedantic? Rose?" Christian appeared in the doorway of the kitchen again, plates in hand, with an amused expression on his face. "That's like me cooking a bad meal."

"I would agree with you," I began, smirking as a shocked look registered on his face, "if the second one hadn't already happened."

"Rose!" Lissa exclaimed, shooting me an annoyed look. "Christian, your meals are-"

"It's alright Lissa, I'll get Rosie back for that," he smirked once more and handed us our plates. "Grilled chicken, peas, potato wedges, and, especially for Rose, poison. Eat up."

"You want some cake with that?" I smirked back. Sparky and I had the kind of relationship that made us look like teenaged-which we technically still were, at 18-siblings stuffed full of hormones whenever we argued. Which was often.

"Not before dinner," Lissa commented, earning herself a few confused looks from the guys. "It's bad to eat cake before a meal."

"Liss..." I laughed. "I meant it as a joke. You know, like 'cherry on top'?"

"Oh," she muttered, her cheeks blushing a faint pink-the pale complexion that was one of the bolder aspects of being a Moroi didn't allow her to go completely red. That was a good thing for Lissa, but a bad thing for anyone who wanted to embarrass her, and that usually included me and a game of truth or dare.

The rest of the meal passed with silence and the occasional bout of friendly chatter.

"Thank you, Lissa, Christian, that was a lovely meal," Dimitri smiled at Lissa and Christian.

"Only the best for the best," Christian smirked, and I rolled my eyes.

"How about we do this again, huh?" I said, dropping my knife and fork onto my plate.

"Sure thing, Rosie Posie, when's good for you?" he asked as he cleared the table.

"Same time next week? I mean, it's a Saturday so it won't disturb religious arrangements, there's no set meal, and we have no shifts on that day. Except this one, and we'll be with you all the meal, won't we?" Dimitri suggested, cutting off any comments I had ready to accompany the glare I was shooting at Christian.

"Of course!" Lissa half-squealed, but clapped her hand over her mouth only moments after she'd spoken. "Oops, sorry. See you later then."

"Bye!" I waved as Dimitri and I headed for the door, and a peaceful feeling planted itself in the pit of my stomach, despite my previously annoyed attitude.

The sun had begun to rise gently in to the sky as Dimitri and I strolled hand-in-hand across Court. Our footsteps were the only sounds apart from the other guardians' footsteps, the distant echo of music from a party in one of the accommodation blocks that housed the graduates and younger residents-people a little like me-, and the constant presence of the wildlife just outside the wards. I also knew something else that was just outside the wards. It had never really bothered me before. They were there (everywhere). It was a fact. But knowing for sure that they were on your doorstep did more than just keep you alert. It made some panic, and it wound some up so tight they had trouble 'loosening up' afterwards. The kind of panic and 'uptight-ness' that made you doubt the ethics of the mantra that was drilled into every guardian from the moment they could talk and walk - _they come first_.

"Roza?" Dimitri asked.

"Yeah?" I said, plastering on a fake smile. _No point, Rose, he already saw you and your 'thinking face'. He's bound to know something's up._

"You looked a little...distracted."

"Oh, I'm always distracted. A mission contributor to that is standing right next to me," I grinned. _Stop it, stupid! You sound like a kid. Are you trying to erase all the work you did after Spokane? _Spokane. I feel my heart constrict and my eyes begin to water.

"Hathaway! Belikov!" I spun around, grateful for the distraction, however loud it had been, that would pull me away from the questioning look I knew would be in Dimitri's eyes.

"Hans? What's wrong?" Dimitri turned to look at the man we knew (all too well) who was charging towards us. But this time he wasn't angry. He looked...panicked? If I wasn't a guardian I would've freaked out on the spot.

"There's been a Strigoi sighting. They're heading this way."

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**A/N: Thanks for reading this chapter! :) Leave a review if you want. See you next update!**


	5. Chapter 4

**A/N: Hi! :) I'm feeling really happy today because I got out two new pieces on here and an update on FictionPress. You've got to love being inspired. Anyway, copying and pasting another chapter from storage! I own nothing and desperately hope you like it. XP Don't forget the spoilers, by the way, like I nearly did...**

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Hell must've been listening when I ranted about wanting to attack Strigoi and wipe them out, because someone with a malevolent sense of humour decided to make my wish come true. Even the attacks on the Badicas, Drozdovs, and the academy had at least a few days in between them. But this...two attacks in one day?! Something was wrong.

"Where?" was Dimitri's first question as he shifted into his fighting stance, a look of stone set in his eyes.

"Five minutes from the wards, and they have humans with them," Hans responded. The same adrenaline that was already pumping through the veins of the guardians surrounding us rose in me. The first thing I noticed was the music; it had stopped, replaced by screams and yells and the futile attempts of the other guardians to keep the entire population of Court calm.

"How many are there?" I asked. I clutched my stake in one hand and balled the other up into a fist. I'd fight with pure manpower if I had to. That was usually the case in most Strigoi fights. You would punch, kick, and dodge until you were given an opening, then you'd stake your opponent. A whole lot more difficult that it sounds...

"More than thirty, we know that for sure. It's a wonder they can co-operate in groups this large..." Hans shook his head and turned to the guardians that stood in our area. Strigoi were even worse than royal Moroi at keeping the peace. They had fights over willpower that were purely savage, and, from what I saw during my time in Russia, they were always looking to get one up on each other.

"...so get into battle positions and fight!" Hans finished barking out his orders as I tuned back into what was happening.

"Fight?" asked one of the younger guardians. He obviously liked the idea of being a sitting duck while the Strigoi plotting another attack against us.

"Yes, son, fight! Go!" Hans yelled, leaving no room for argument. As they jogged off into the distance, he turned to us. "I've assigned two guardians to every safety room and rest are fighting on the front courtyard. Go and find your charges. Quickly."

"Yes Sir," Dimitri nodded firmly, his jaw clenched, and grabbed my arm, pulling me toward the Queen's chambers.

* * *

I raced through the corridors, eyes sweeping every nook and cranny for that frighteningly white complexion and red glow. It was light-how could Strigoi attack? Why did humans have to help them? How many more than thirty were there? I couldn't answer any of these questions. Not entirely. And I certainly couldn't answer the one that sprung to mind next: why didn't Lissa tell me about the sighting? I mean, people don't just get news like that a the drop of a hat. It'd take some time for the news to get back, then more time to analyse the authenticity and information, and even more still to get the word around the front of Court before it reached the back, which was where we'd been. We'd only set off from Lissa's a minute or two before Hans came running up to us, and, although Guardians have to work quick, it's not possible to work _that _quick.

I hammered my fist against Lissa's door, sweeping the corridor with my eyes as I desperately shifted on the spot.

_Please answer, please answer, please answer, _I chanted inside my head. I wished I had the bond again. The door opened seconds later.

"Rose? Dimitri? What's wrong?" Lissa asked. Her eyes darted from me to Dimitri with confusion.

_She's alright, _sighed a relieved voice at the back of my mind.

"Liss, there are strigoi attacking Court. Loads of them. We've got to get you to one of the safety rooms now."

"Wait," she said, face suddenly frantic, and turned around. "Christian! We have to go!"

"Lissa, what the-" he began, stumbling out of their bedroom sleepily. "Liss, babe, what's wrong? Why are you shouting?" he asked, examining our expressions.

"Strigoi. We have to-" I began, only to be cut off by him.

"Yeah, yeah, I know the drill," he hissed and followed us outside. I lead Lissa and Christian through the corridors, heart thundering against my ribcage so loud I wondered if out attackers couldn't hear it from down below. Dimitri brought up the rear in silent vigilance. Between us, Lissa snuggled close to Christian, but unlike her, keeping close to him because she knew she had no defence other than us, not even magic, he kept one hand free. Christian and I had taken out quite a few Strigoi in an attack on St. Vladimir's Academy during out field experience, and he didn't seem afraid to attempt it again. Especially now we had Dimitri to guard Lissa and fight at the same time. I pushed open the door of the building, stepping out. Clawing violently, I felt the hands of the Strigoi ambush me before I saw it. All of a sudden, its head was alight and I was shoving my stake up into its heart. I gave Christian a meaningful glance, one that said a hundred words at once, and he nodded. He understood.

We fought our way through to the nearest safety room with similar tactics; set them on fire, then stake them. Dimitri made sure Lissa was safely locked inside and darted off. I watched him go with a flare of worry then turned to Christian as he began to walk away.

"Lord Ozera, where are you go-"

"To fight," he told them firmly. You could tell he meant it. It wasn't just some silly teenage aspiration or a child's wish of vengeance. It was a man's bid to fight for his people. And that's what he'd do. So we left, joining the crowded fight on the front courtyard.

* * *

There were much more than thirty Strigoi. And that wasn't counting the trail of bodies we'd left on our way to the safety room and the piles of them here. They were everywhere, raging and clawing, grating their fangs together and sneering in people's faces. The stench of blood and the grunts and screams of people surrounding us filled the air as we started at the edge of the crowd, and burnt and staked our way along the perimeter. Barely anyone cared what the source of the help was. They were grateful for it, but those who did see turned to us with shocked faces before they engaged another opponent. I'm not saying we didn't get our fair share of beatings, though. A strong punch had been delivered to my jaw and my lip had been cut. My arms were scratched deeply and my body as a whole was bound to be covered in bruises the next day. Christian's timing had begun to slow-he was obviously weakening. He brushed it off and pressed onward, his stance telling everyone within sight range that he wouldn't back down until he either collapsed, or every Strigoi in Court lay decapitated, staked, or incinerated on the ground.

After what seemed like an eternity, we were down to what I estimated to be about ten Strigoi - it's not easy to count things that move at nearly the speed of light. Guardians had slipped off the scene to double protection, pick off the dozen-or-so Strigoi that had broken through our defences, or to get medical attention. Unknowingly, we'd made ourselves out numbered. Three guardians and a fire using Moroi versus about ten Strigoi? Nah, not a good match from our side.

"Christian! Rose!" came a voice from behind us. No. She didn't...

"Lissa!" Christian yelled, almost angry, as he tried-and failed-to set the Strigoi advancing on us on fire. "Go. Back!"

"How did you get out?" I asked, battling distractedly, earning me a gash at my waist.

"I compelled the-"

"Damnit, Liss! Just get back in there now!" I hissed. She hesitated, and that was more than enough to make me repeat my instructions. "_Go_!"

_Don't hesitate,_ I repeated in my head, remembering all the times I had heard it in my life, how very important it was to _not _hesitate, and how I had come to truly understand that. She nodded weakly but before she could do anything more, a blast of heat and light erupted before us. I turned and stared at it-a solid wall of fire. The tendrils of bright orange flame curled around each other, locking into place and holding tight against the wall of Strigoi. It smouldered and crackled, making beads of sweat form on our foreheads. Existing for only a few more brief moments, it flickered and died. Lissa rushed forward and threw her arms around Christian.

"You did it!" she cried. And he promptly fell limp in her arms.

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**A/N: And that's it for this chapter! Opinions (not onions) would be amazing. :)**


	6. Chapter 5

**A/N: I think this will be the last update until the weekend - I have guests tomorrow. :) As usual, I don't own VA. I didn't gain a genie and wish for to do so since the last time I posted. Enjoy the chapter!**

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Lissa's face fell. All the glee left it and she dropped to her knees, cradling his body in her arms.

"Christian, wake up. Please, wake up," she begged.

"Your majesty-" one of the guardians began, stepping over the piles of ash that were once Strigoi, and moving towards her. I stepped in front of them and cut them off.

"It's okay, he's just exhausted from the magic. We'll take him to your chambers," I said to her firmly, displaying an outwardly confident look. I could understand her upset-he looked terrible. His face had gone pale, even by Moroi standards, and his limbs lay feebly in Lissa's grip. The guardian trying to talk to Lissa gave me an incredulous look that said 'how do _you _know', and I replied with, "I'm her guardian, I'll take over from here."

"One of her guardians. Queen Vasilisa has many," they pointed out. I slung one of Christian's arms over my shoulder and Lissa helped me hoist him to his feet.

"Same difference," I told the guardian, and then departed towards the Queen's Chambers.

* * *

As we walked over to the clinic Christian's eyes flickered beneath their lids, and he mumbled something.

"Rose, what's he saying?" Lissa asked, casting me a sidelong glance. I bit my lip and watched as he repeated the words, this time less slurred.

"Are they...gone? That what he's asking," I relayed. Lissa nodded and tilted her head so it faced his the best it could.

"The Strigoi, Chris? Yeah, they're gone. We're safe. You did great out there," she smiled. I stayed poker-faced as he nodded and ceased his attempts to move on his own. I heard heavy footsteps behind us, pressed Christian against Lissa, and spun around. She stumbled backwards but didn't fall, though, even if she had, it didn't matter then. Some Strigoi could've broken through the defense lines earlier. It'd not be as easy to take them now th-

"Roza!" cried a familiar voice. Dimitri. The corners of my lips curled up into a small, relieved smile.

"Comrade," I sighed, wrapping arms around him for a few brief moments. He relaxed into the embrace and kissed my cheek. We pulled back and Dimitri took my place supporting Christian.

"What happened?" he asked, taking in our appearances. Lissa's hair was battered by the wind and thin traces of blood from Christian's clothing had dripped onto her own. Christian had blood splattered over his shirt and trousers, hair tossed about even more than usual. Looking at myself then, I looked far worse than either of them. I frowned down at my t-shirt, soaked in crimson, and my bottoms, similarly covered. My hair was slipping out of its bun and, now that the numb that adrenaline brought to my body had shifted, I could feeling the sting of the various wounds I had.

* * *

"We were fighting the last dozen or so and we weren't getting anywhere at all. We were all weak and then Lissa ran over and Christian set them all on fire, and well...collapsed!" I explained, throwing my hands up in the air in frustration.

"He'll be fine, he just needs some rest," he nodded. His eyes scanned my body - and its cuts and bruises. "You need to get these bandaged up."

"I know. After Christian's at the clinic, though," I said. Then Lissa reached across Christian and Dimitri, and only when her hand touched my wrist did I realize what she was doing. "No," I told her firmly. "We've discussed this. No using spirit unless it's absolutely necessary. These cuts will heal in a few days. It's not worth putting more pressure on today's healing charm."

"But, Rose-"

"No 'but's, Lissa."

When we filed into the clinic, the doctor that had treated me, Dimitri, and my parents earlier turned away from a microscope she'd been looking into and smiled at us.

"Twice in one day? I believe it's a record," she chuckled, and reached to help Christian up onto the bed. She engaged in a hushed conversation with Lissa-all I caught was the nodding and the hissing sound whispers made. She handed her some wipes and walked over to an empty bed, patting the mattress. I sighed heavily and hoisted myself up. She wiped down practically all my arms and face then left to sift through the items on a trolley behind her. I looked around. Lissa sat next to Christian and smiled down at him as he struggled to form a coherent sentence. Dimitri stood by the door, still on high alert from the fight. But the bed my mum had been in was empty. Surely she'd be there for longer, especially with the way doctors here like to keep people in over night when you have anything more than a few cuts and bruises...

"Her Royal Highness tells me you've had an interesting day, no?" the doctor asked, returning with the materials she needed to stitch my largest cut.

"Yeah. The earlier attack was one in the woods and now we have the full-scale thing here. I have a bad feeling about this. I hope there weren't too many casualties," I replied.

"There weren't. I had to go out a few times to help people back here so they could be treated-they couldn't make it over on their own."

"I see. Talking of not being able to make it over on your own, you wouldn't happen to know where my mum is, would you?"

"Well, if she's anything like you, then she'll probably have pushed herself into the thick of the fight. I'll go and find her later so I can finish off the treatment," she smiled what I think was meant to be a reassuring smile and finishing closing my wound.

* * *

"She's being treated but probably won't mind," I heard Dimitri say. I looked up and there was Hans, slightly battered and bruised, but Hans all the same.

"Hans," I nodded curtly. Then I saw his expression; a muddle of worry and anger. "What's wrong?"

"Some of the more old school royals are a bit...outraged at Lord Ozera's use of offensive magic. I'd like your help to diffuse the situation," he explained. I half expected a snort and a sarcastic remark from Christian about how I was more likely to start a situation of my own, then, with a pang of guilt, I remembered his condition and mentally stared down at myself.

"Ah. I'll be right there, if my captor will let me go," I replied, casting a glance at the doctor. It took her a moment but she realized with I meant.

"Oh, of course," she nodded. "You're good to go."

"Thanks," I said, and hopped off the bed.

"Follow me," Hans held open the door and we left the clinic, twisting and turning through the corridors. "This way," he beckoned me over to a window in a well-aired, empty room near Lissa's Chambers. I peered through the glass and saw the chanting people below, protesting with posters and 'moral' books. Very few were younger than thirty and they were all saying the same thing-no offensive magic.

"I want to talk to them," I decided. Hans only bobbed his head in reply and gestured down a corridor. He pointed to some doors leading out onto the balcony of the front room parlour we now stood in. I pushed them open and strode outside. There was nothing regal or majestic in my step. I stood at the railing and shouted over the mingled voices. "Shut it!"

All heads turned to me and their eyes followed, settling their gazes over me like smothering coats of (filthy) velvet.

"There is no need for this! Would you all rather be dead? Christian Ozera," they winced at the informality, "just saved your lives by defeating those creatures and now you're putting him down while he's lying unconscious in a hospital bed!" I yelled. Alright, a tiny little lie, he was half conscious already. But they didn't need to know that.

"It goes against all that we've been taught! How could he?" someone called from the crowd.

"Allowing transformed Strigoi back into society goes against what you've been taught. But you do it anyway. That's much more extreme than one case of life saving offensive magic. So why can't you accept this?" I watched them whisper to each other and come to decisions.

"She's right, you know!" remarked one of the much, much older men of the group. There were muttered 'yes's and 'I suppose so's, and the image of protest ceased. The crowd dispersed, and just like that, everything was normal again. As much as it could be, anyway. Hans joined me on the balcony.

"That was quite good. We should get the Moroi to rant in front of the Queen's Chambers more often," he laughed. "I have something else to show you," he announced, handing me a printed list, his expression suddenly sombre. "A list of all the dead or taken. Though it's mostly the latter. I'd like you to tell their families."

"Of course," I said, making a feeble attempt at a smile. He needed someone who knew what it was like to lose people - temporarily or permanently - to battle to break the news to the families. If there were any. So that's exactly what I did.

* * *

Luckily, beside every name on the list was a reference to family and their accommodation number. Some were high society Moroi, and some were shiny new guardians who knew little about real world fighting. They weren't like I was at that age. They probably had never seen as Strigoi in person before, and especially not seen its power as it snapped their neck or carried them away for reasons you probably wouldn't want to tell your children any time in the day, never mind before they went to bed. What I found suspicious was that it was mostly women they kidnapped, the majority of those being dhampirs. I could understand some of the 'logic' behind that. If they could pick off all the dhampir women in service as guardians, and then some, dhampir men would have to mate with Moroi women to create more dhampirs to protect the Moroi. And not many would do that, so then they'd be able to kill off the poorly protected Moroi. And they could wait for the dhampir men to die too. They could wait forever. I didn't know what was more scary; the fact that they could have found a way to wipe out our race or the fact that I knew exactly how to.

Of course, mingled in with those were Moroi men and women - that's a given. Moroi blood strengthens them. It's a well known fact. This next house was for a recently graduated Moroi brother and sister that had been kidnapped. Probably to be turned. 'Aria Pentle' and 'Dean Pentle'. I knocked on room 546 and waited for them to answer. After about a minute, the door swung open.

"Aria, Dean, I-" the woman in the doorway stopped when she saw me, visibly surprised. "Oh, hello. What can I do for you?"

"My name's Guardian Rose Hathaway, and I'm sorry to say this, but...Aria and Dean have been taken in the recent attack and we're doing our best to recover them. I'm so sorry," I told her softly. I saw something being crushed deep down inside her and tears sprung to her eyes. She let out a choked sob and I wrapped my arms around her. "Shh... Don't worry..." I pulled away and excused myself from the house, glancing at the last two names. I didn't expect to be breaking the news to myself on this trip;

'Janine Hathaway-Taken

Ibrahim Mazur-Taken'.

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**A/N: Don't throw stones about that last bit, I live in a glass house! :O Joking... I hope you guys liked the chapter. Until next time!**


	7. Chapter 6

**A/N: Hello again! :) Thanks to those who reviewed! I'm here with the next chapter, sorry for the wait. Logging on and working has been hit and miss for me - I've been a little ill. Anyway, I own nothing except the plot and the little tid bits that aren't in the VA books. Enjoy! ^_^**

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I don't cry often. I'm just not one of those people. I'm more likely to take it out on a punch bag, or a dummy, or a real person. If I'm really angry, it can be any of those three - I'd be punching so blindly it wouldn't make a difference. It's usually the former, because Dimitri always says that punching real people is harmful to me and who I decide to give a busted nose, and I should show better control. And punching Court's training dummies will land me with a sprained wrist or ankle. As I said, I don't cry often, but this time I did-I _really _did. My heart plummeted and I felt tears soak my cheeks in seconds. Knees giving way beneath me, I fell to the ground. I don't know how long I stayed there, outside that accommodation building, as the wind whipped my hair and clothes.

Until strong arms encompassed me and pulled me to a stand, gently stroking my hair. I looked up into the owner's eyes and took comfort in the deep brown orbs I saw there.

"Roza?" Dimitri asked, as he brushed tears from my cheeks. Concern filled his gaze as he held me up.

"Strigoi...Mum...Abe... Taken," I croaked out. He understood almost immediately, scooping me up easily and carrying me across the courtyard.

"Don't worry," he whispered. "We'll get them back," and to think, only a while ago, _I_ had been telling a weeping woman the exact same thing. But somehow, I wasn't as easily fooled by it. Was it the fact that there wasn't a reason to 'not worry' for me? Or maybe because I was used to always worrying, and always having something to worry about? Perhaps it's just the fact that these people are my own flesh and blood and not just name on a piece of paper to me.

* * *

"You're really close to them. In reality, aren't you?" Dimitri said as I laid in his arms beneath our bed covers. It was sometime around midnight for Moroi and Dhampirs, and the sun kept at bay by the tinted windows was strong.

"Who?" I tilted my head upwards and looked into his eyes, my hand pausing in the patterns it was tracing on his chest.

"Your parents, Rose," he smiled, kissing my forehead and squeezing my other hand where it rested in his.

"Oh. Yeah, I guess I do. I never saw it before but...I do," I mumbled.

"We'll get them back. I mean it. They'll set up a rescue team and go get them. Hans will make sure of it," he told me firmly, his tone backing his every word. I almost believed it this time.

"Okay. Comrade?"

"Yes, Roza?"

"I'm going to sleep now," I whispered, as my eyelids grew heavy. They slid over my eyes, blocking out the little light that the tinted windows allowed inside. Moments after, I fell into a restless sleep.

Unfortunately, I woke early - just before sunset. I slipped into my guardian uniform and trudged across the courtyard in the rapidly fading light. I started to jog, hoping to get some part of my morning run in before I did what I was about to do. In barely any time I was standing before the Guardians' Building some way across Court. The sun had almost sunk below the hills and it cast a misty orange light over everything; when I stepped inside, I found out it had done the same there.

"Can I line all my shifts up, please? Like this," I told the desk clerk, running my finger along the four three-hour shifts of the day.

"All day?!" he exclaimed, and looked at me as though I'd grown another head. With all the thoughts going through it, I might as well have.

"Yes, all day," I replied. I feigned a look that said 'I'm getting impatient' and he nodded vigorously.

"Alright. Name?"

"Rosemarie Hathaway."

"Thank you, your shift starts...now," he said, showing me his watch. I simple walked out and started on my journey over to Lissa's Chambers.

Even if this meant a day of standing around or walking silently by Lissa's side, it would mean I didn't have to talk to Dimitri. Or anyone. At least not personally. I wouldn't have the chance or the privilege to. And, for once, I didn't mind the fact that I had been cheated out of certain things by the very fact I was a Dhampir. No matter how much I loved those brown eyes, I didn't want to hear how everything was going to be alright, and that my parents were absolutely safe. I wanted to hear that I had no time for nothing more than emotionless protection and I wanted to know that if any Strigoi tried to attack on my watch, they'd suffer a painful death. They'd feel something stab at their heart-just something ten times more painful and lethal than what they'd shoved into mine. They'd pay.

So I made sure I was there all the time. Every day for a week I took shifts that collided with Dimitri's downtime, leaving myself with only three hours of sleep each day and a whole lot of caffeine in my system. At first I couldn't believe it was working, until I came home from twenty-one hours of solid guarding, flopping on the bed, when I realized I was being watched. Careless-for a guardian. My eyes surveyed the room and landed on the one thing I'd been trying to avoid for the past seven days. Dimitri Belikov.

"Roza-"

"Forget it," I hiss, peeling myself away from the bed. "I'll go find somewhere else to sleep!" I took one last look in his direction then left the room, storming outside. As I passed the guardians on the outside, I caught wisps of their conversation.

"She's been burying herself in work. Why is nobody doing anything? The stupid girl."

"She's traumatized-"

"Oh, I'm sure she is. Listen, we've all lost people, it's just her, I'm surprised she hasn't run away with some idiotic vendetta to kill, maim, and beat until she gets them back," and I'd had enough. I flagged them behind their backs (despite how childish it seemed) and stormed away, kicking a trash can as I went. It clattered to the floor but nothing attracted attention in the little alley I'd turned into. How could they?!

I had to admit that I favoured the 'she's traumatized' guardian's opinion more than the other's but not by much. I wasn't a bratty, naïve, typical teenager anymore. That Rose died with Mason in Spokane. And I wasn't a weak, tearful, trembling child. She never existed to begin with. Then I realized something-why _couldn't_ I do what was already expected of me? The opinions of those guardians didn't matter, and Lissa was well guarded. This time I could run away, and come back with no aftermath. So I would do it. I'd run away.

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**A/N: What do you think? Let me know, if you like. :) Thanks for reading!**


	8. Chapter 7

**A/N: Hi! Bad news, although it won't affect this fic as much as my others... One of my medical conditions has taken a turn for the worst and my online time is limited. Two hours offline for every one online. But, anyway, here's the next chapter.**

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Like I said, I could run away. But I'd have to be careful, and fake. I didn't like to lie to Dimitri, and he could usually see through me anyway, but I has to in this case. If I wanted the guards to let me within five miles of getting out the gates then he had to be convinced I was of sound mind right up until I left. So I wiped all the emotion from my face and replaced it with a thick layer of my 'apology' face. I stalked back inside, earning guilty looks from both guardians at the door as they saw who had heard their conversation only minutes ago. I walked up to our apartment and tried the door. Unlocked. I pushed it open and stepped inside, closing it neatly behind me.

"Dimitri?" I called in the calmest voice I could muster.

"Rose-"

"Listen, Dimitri, I didn't mean what I said before. It's just they're my only family and...you know..." I trailed off. He turned in his position on the bed and considered me for a second, before nodding and smiling.

"Don't worry about it, come here," he said. He patted the bed beside him, and I sincerely hoped he was convinced by my 'they're all I've got' act. I curled up beside him and he wrapped an arm around my waist, pulling me to him. "So, does this mean you'll stop working those ridiculously long shifts and sleep longer? At the minute you've only been having three hours of sleep a day. Even a Dhampir can't survive on that little for long, and you know it."

And that's where lying to Dimitri got a little more difficult. He wanted sacrifices. Great. So I cut my twenty-one hour working day, down to a twelve-hour working day. Except, only I knew that it was really only eight hours - and three hours sneaking into the archives each Moroi afternoon when Mikhail Tanner was on duty (he insisted on the favour for bringing back Sonya Karp, a former Moroi-turned-Strigoi, for him) and gathering as much information on the attack as possible. Which direction did they come from? How did they get in? The East gate near the mountains. Were they armed? No. Where did they leave? That was a bit more difficult. The footage I had been examining for the past three visits was what the experts like to call 'inconclusive', and what I like to call 'absolutely useless'. It was from the wrong angle. I sighed in frustration and flopped back in my seat.

"Problem?" Mikhail asked, looking over my shoulder at the papers spread out on the desk and the exhaustively repeated CCTV footage.

"Yeah. The angle this stuff is shot at won't let me see which way those idiots got out."

"Well, if you..." he trailed off and reached over. He tapped something into the keyboard of the computer and watched as the footage zoomed in to the area he'd pinpointed. "There you go. Repeat it," he moved out of my way a little as I pressed the repeat button, watching as nothing but the blank scenery showed itself on the screen.

"There's nothing-" I began, but then it caught my eye. Little figures marching into a small hole in the mountain and more still coming out the other side. So that was the path to their 'hideout'. "Thanks..."

"No problem," Mikhail nodded and trudged back over to the door.

* * *

I shut down the equipment and gathered my papers, making my way quietly out into the corridor. And I ran straight into six feet seven inches of Dhampir man. And guess who it was? Yep, you guessed it, all that Russian badass god-ness called Dimitri Belikov.

"Rose? What are you doing down here?" he asked, stepping back a little so we weren't pressed together like two slices of bread in a sandwich.

"Oh, just helping Mikhail with something," I blurted out. Well, it was partially the truth; he thought he had a debt to me and I was helping get rid of that thought. But somehow, even though it was closer to honesty than the previous lie, this one seemed less believable. His brow creased and he didn't say anything until someone tried to squeeze past us in the corridor and Dimitri pulled me to the side and waited as they passed. When they were out of earshot, he nodded and gestured in front of him towards the exit. I plastered on a smile and complied traipsing up the steps and out into the Moroi evening.

"So, what's that?" Dimitri asked, pointing to the folder.

"The stuff I was helping him with," I replied. He gave me an impatient look. "It's some graduate files he wants me to order, that's all, and I said I could keep them with me so they don't get lost in the piles of other papers."

"I see," he said, seeming to accept it. "I'm going to cook dinner, I'll see you soon."

"See you soon!" I smiled and waved as he retreated into the distant, back towards our apartment. "Or not," I added quietly when he was gone. I had to leave tonight, and the next stop was the armoury.

* * *

Two guards stood at either side of the armoury doors, and I needed to get past all of them. Which would get me in the least trouble-lying or beating them up? Lying. I could pass that off as required, but knocking your fellow protectors unconscious wasn't usually socially - or officially - acceptable among guardians. I walked up to the first one on the left side of the door and put on a serious face.

"Yes?" he asked, looking piercingly into my eyes as his colleagues scanned the area.

"I'm Guardian Hathaway and I need to borrow a gun for training with some other Guardians."

"Which guardians?" he raised an eyebrow.

"Some graduates, I don't know their names."

"Mhm... Go in but only take one, you understand?" he said, sweeping his condescending gaze over me once more before opening the door and allowing me inside. I allowed him to close the door and took a gun from its rack. I ran a hand along it and nodded my approval. Goodbye Court, hello Strigoi prison.

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**A/N: Opinions? Reviews of any kind would be amazing, if you want. :) The rain here's driving me mad... See you soon!**


	9. Chapter 8

**A/N: How long has it been since I updated? At least a week, right? It has to be... Anyway, here I am with another chapter. I've felt like a radiator, lunatic and dart board all in one, this week... :P Enough about me. I'll hand you over to Rose and her friends. ****_Poor you..._**

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There are certain pros and cons to trying to get past about three guardians at Court's East gate. The pros are that you're sure that's the right direction, and you're actually a guardian now-if you're me-and you're not suspected of high treason anymore, so that's good. In fact, you're pretty well known. But the cons outweigh those by far - Dhampirs are very good at spotting a lie, and they'll probably want to search you, so they'll find the gun and papers and start asking questions about why you're not just carrying a stake and cell phone. Then there's the fact that you're outnumbered three to one and they've all been fighting a lot longer than you, no matter how badass you are. And you have no Lissa, or Christian, or Mia, or even Adrian to use compulsion and get you shipped out of there cleanly (more or less). So you're doomed, basically. Unless you're me.

I've run away from compounds like that twice and dropped out of one once. Why couldn't I do it again? Granted I didn't have Lissa's inheritance or Adrian's donation this time but who really needs money to run through a mountain and bust their parents out of a high security prison full of evil, sneering, biting vermin? Not me. I lied my way out of Court, silently praying that I wouldn't slip up or suddenly turn into the boy who cried wolf. Because being eaten by wolves - or Strigoi - isn't a fun way to die. Not that any way is fun, but... You get the point.

I found the entrance to the tunnel and ran inside, regardless of the spiders and insects wriggling about beneath me. For what seemed like a long time, my own footsteps were all I heard. But then they were joined by another, heavier, and equally as fast set. Too light to be a Moroi, too fast to be a human. Strigoi or Dhampir. I couldn't take the risk, not alone in here. I drew my stake and spun in the direction of the noises, seeing the shadow of the intruder approaching me. I leapt at it and pressed it against the opposite wall, but it grabbed my wrists and flipped us around, exposing its face to the light.

* * *

"Roza," Dimitri said, smiling at me through the dimness of the tunnel with a worry-laden smile. He let go of my wrists and stepped back as much as he could without the curving side of the rock hitting his head. "Why?"

"I have all the information," I responded, crossing my arms over my chest. "I have a gun for the humans and anything else that serve them. I'm prepared."

"Are you? Are you really? How can you be sure you won't break down and hug them when you see them, giving someone more than enough chance to stab you in the back? Literally."

"I won't," I insisted, something stubborn in my tone.

"Roza, I'm sorry that this happened and I'm sorry I'm saying these things but-"

"Stop saying sorry!" the walls shook. "I'm sick of pity!"

"I, err..." he scratched the back of his neck, looking nervous and taken aback, and expression I didn't usually see.

"Fine. Join me. But don't try to stop me," I hissed, then turned back to the other side of the mountain and continued towards my goal.

With Dimitri now part of my group, my progress was slower (at least he didn't bring up all my lies - if he even knew about them). Normally I would've been happy he cared so much, but the regular stops for food, drink, and rest just slowed me down. It was five minutes more that my parents had to survive that hell. And I hated my thirst. It was ten more minutes those dead people's lives went un-avenged. I loathed the fact that I needed to consume food at all. It was six hours that those Strigoi had one more brownie point than me. I despised sleep. And nobody - absolutely _nobody _- had one more brownie point than me.

"It's your turn to do surveillance after this," Dimitri told me as he approached the meal I was holding over the campfire on a makeshift rotisserie. We had a system; While he was on surveillance, I would eat breakfast and 'clean up', then I'd cook dinner for him and go off to monitor the prison - hidden by more rough terrain and unkempt undergrowth-while he ate the meal. And our sleep? Well, that came whenever we weren't doing something. And it was light - being killed by Strigoi isn't any better than being killed by them in general.

"Okay," I nodded and pulled the meat away from the fire, placing it with the berries and water in twig-and-leaf baskets at the side. Dimitri sat quietly in front of them and smiled weakly at me.

"I'll save some of the berries for you," he said. Too tired to protest and tell him he should eat as much as he could and get his strength up, I gave him a grateful look and stalked off to watch the prison we'd been spying on since we'd arrived.

The compound was surrounded on two sides by sharp mountain, and open, yet uneven, terrain on the other two. A sloppily built iron fence encompassed the buildings. But there was one thing that stumped me - why was it so small? They'd need a lot of room for the people they'd kidnapped, even if they were squashing them up shoulder to shoulder. And they'd need somewhere for their humans to stay. And separate 'rooms' for themselves because otherwise they'd have killed each other by now. The only way they could have all that is by using everything underground inside their small, fenced off area, and the surface buildings with tinted windows that I presumed to be things to trick the eye. Weren't they just lobbies? They were in a bad place for prisoner cells and it'd fry any Strigoi that tried to stay up there when it was light. That was another thing - how did they attack in the day? Okay, I think we'd gathered from the Badica attack that bad things _do_ happen in the day, but not like this they don't.

My shift of surveillance was quiet and I snuck back to our 'base' where Dimitri sat on the 'roof' of a small cave, stake in hand. He slid to the floor and straightened up. Handing me half-full basket of berries, he started to leave, but I grabbed his arm.

"Wait," I said, not exactly sure what I was doing, or why. "I think we should try to get in there. We've watched it. We know vaguely what it's like. It's the best we can do and we shouldn't wait any longer or we'll just get weaker and slower."

"I..." he thought for a second then stepped back towards me. I let go of his arm as he began to speak again. "Yes, we should. Tomorrow, when it's light again. I've just slept. You get some rest then we'll go."

* * *

**A/N: As I'm writing this, I have no idea how this looks from your end. But I'm not too sure... It looks too short even though the word count is over 1,000. What do _you_ think? Let me know if you like. Thanks for reading! Any advice for improvement (but no flames) would be more than welcome. However, it'd have to come when all the chapters I'm posting are posted and some of my projects that I'm writing are finished. :/**


	10. Chapter 9

**A/N: Not really much to say here... But I would like to apologise to SafaiaMurakami - I'm sure my past self didn't intend to make him seem that way. I'll note that as something to improve when I finish something and, perhaps, remodel this.**

**It's been a...messy...week but I got out a few more chapters on things both on this site and off. So, I suppose, there's no harm done. :) I own nothing, as usual, and I hope you enjoy this chapter!**

* * *

Morning - or night, for the nocturnal community - came along all too soon for Dimitri. Or so it seemed as he glanced around at the features of the area we were in, cast in a pale light. For me, every second closer we got to this thing, the...happier...I became. I hid my gun beneath my trouser leg, sighing as the cool metal made contact with my skin in the heat, and I clutched my stake with one hand. The basket of berries Dimitri had saved for me before sat beside our campfire, still almost as full as when he gave it to me. I bent down and picked up a handful of them, and carefully examined each one. Satisfied that they were safe, I popped one inside my mouth and chewed.

"Mm, not bad," I commented quietly.

"That's what I said at dinner," said a deeper voice, something amused in his tone. Dimitri walked out of the small cave he'd been sitting on top of before and took a few berries for himself. "They're good."

"They are. I'm actually kind of proud that I found them," I nodded, swallowing the rest of my handful whole.

"You found them?"

"Yeah, don't sound so surprised," I shook my head at him as I stood up. "I can be useful when I want to be."

"You just don't often want to be, huh?" he asked with a chuckle. I nodded.

"Are you, err...ready yet?" I asked slowly. He nodded his affirmative and I almost laughed-it was so domesticated. Yes, there was the fact we were out in the wild and about to bust into a Strigoi hideout. But it still seemed far too homey and normal for me not to find humour in it. My mind drifted back to the mission and my expression turned somber. We had to do this well or we wouldn't live long enough to have that domesticated life.

And it seemed like Sonya Karp wasn't the only Strigoi with a thing for plants-the shrubbery surrounding the compound said as much. It was unkempt and not nearly as colourful or alive as the flowers outside the blue house, but it was certainly much more alive than the monsters it surrounded. Dimitri and I hid behind one of the less tame bushes, as he briefed me on our plan.

"We sneak up to the gate quietly, stab the human guards as quickly as possible and get inside. From there, we find our way inside the building and fight until we find the cells. Free as many people as possible and only retreat when absolutely necessary, understand?" he said.

"Yeah. But it's a whole lot easier said than done, Comrade," I sighed. He gave me a sympathetic look and we trod off towards the gate. I reached there first and poised my stake to attack. One of the guards turned and looked at me.

"What are you-" stab.

* * *

To say this place was supposed to be Strigoi-infested, we hadn't run into one yet, and we'd already cleared all of the top buildings, minus the one that was locked with a keypad (we weren't getting that undone any time soon). We scouted down the stairs, Dimitri facing forwards and acting as a rather tall shield for me, while I stepped down them sideways, watching the floor above us warily. The first corridor was empty cells. I exchanged a glance with Dimitri when I found myself flying backwards, stopped only by the powerful hand that clung to my jacket sleeve. But that hand was clumsy. Dimitri reacted immediately, pulling it away and starting the dance with death that we like to call 'hand to hand combat'. This Strigoi was new, weaker than the one that had been turned weeks, months, years, even centuries ago. But, like Dhampirs, they were fast and strong by nature, and still had immortality and their mere three (incredibly difficult) ways of death.

* * *

We'd disposed of it and resumed our previous arrangement. Nobody had followed us and, just then, I realized what Dimitri was doing. He was taking all the hits and doing all the fighting. Was he scared I'd go mad like I did with Victor Dashkov? Or that I'd break down and miss the heart by metres? It made me angry, but there was no time for that. We travelled three floors underground, grabbing every item we could handle from the trail of corpses we left behind us. At least we weren't leaving them out in the open-Sydney would be happy. Dimitri stopped at the top of the staircase to the fourth floor, and I walked unknowingly into him. Before I knew what was happening, we were tumbling down the staircase like two bowling balls trying to take out a group of bowling pins. And we did. Except we didn't take them out we fell, literally, into a fight with them. Five against two. No, I wouldn't fancy the odds either. Nevertheless, we slashed and stabbed until they were staked. And then we unlocked the doors of the cells on this floor and freed the few guardians on this floor, and their Moroi. Except 'freeing' the latter was an understatement. More like 'taking at least five minutes to coax one out, let alone a dozen'.

We stuck together. Safety in numbers. But we were woefully unarmed, despite the guardian training the Dhampirs of our group had received, and some of the Moroi's ability to wield fire. Without a stake, guardians couldn't kill Strigoi. Without being them being willing, we also couldn't make Moroi burn Strigoi to ashes. But we could hold them off until Dimitri and I could stab them, right?

_God, I hope so_, I thought as I ushered a cowering elderly Moroi out of his cell. His eyes were deep-set but you could see the joy seeping out of them. The poor thing needed to be back at Court as soon as possible. And for that, I would fight.

"Rose," I heard Dimitri say as we finished clearing the second-to-bottom floor. "Over there," he pointed forward and I looked the two cells he was signalling to. In one was a very familiar Moroi, his skin darker than most, and with more colour than the almost blood-starved ones in the earlier cells. He had dark hair and eyes, and was watching the Dhampir woman in the cell beside his with concern. And her? She had auburn hair and lighter eyes. Her skin was a shade or two paler than mine and there was a crimson red bite mark on her neck. Her struggle against the high of the bite was apparent, but she tried to hide it. She didn't want anyone to know, although I'd already discovered it. And I'd found my parents.

My mind spun, trying to figure out a rational way of going about this. On this floor there was me, Dimitri, about twenty others, and only two stakes, one of which I held. On the floor below was a dead end, my parents, and twelve Strigoi. _Twelve._ And they didn't know we were here.

"Dimitri," I whispered. "You take half of the guardians and have them keep the Strigoi busy. Kill them as fast you can. I'll take the other half and set everyone free. Okay?"

"Okay," he breathed back. We relayed this to the others and waited for the, almost silent, whispers to die down, before we charged down the stairs. The Strigoi leapt into action, snarling at Dimitri's 'army' as I assigned mine to their charge-for-the-day. I pushed through the fighting to Abe's cell and knelt in front of it.

"Kiz," he said, looking my in the eye. "What are you doing here?"

"Rescuing you, Old Man, what else?" I replied hastily, unlocking the door. "Who bit Mum?"

"I, err... Rose, it was me. I bit your mother."

* * *

**A/N: And that's the end of that chapter. O.o I don't know how the next few weeks will plan out but I'll try my best to get regular updates in every few days/once a week. Thanks for reading!**


	11. Chapter 10

**A/N: I'm not sure who's reading this or how many of you there are because I haven't seen a review for one or two chapters - but my follows and favourites are telling me good things, so I hope they're true. :) I've had one hell of a week and I've got more to do tomorrow. Wish me luck! XD**

**I own nothing, otherwise I wouldn't have to wait so long in queues... Enjoy the chapter!**

* * *

"What?!" it was all I could do to not gasp, or scream, or jump back and get myself killed.

"Listen, Rose, she made me-"

"Yeah, as if," I scowled.

"Rose, I did," my mother's frail voice croaked, and our eyes turned to her, slumped against the back wall of her cell. "He gave some attitude to the people handing out blood, so they didn't give him any. It'd been days since his last feeding and I couldn't just let him die!"

"Oh," I said slowly. My dad made a dismissive sort of noise and grabbed the keys in my hand, opening Mum's cell door. He walked inside and helped her to her feet. This time she didn't protest, but leant on him as he lead her out into the corridor. While I was having my shock moment, the fight had reduced to one Strigoi that Dimitri was fighting. The others, unable to help, or find the room to at the tapering end of the corridor, stood back, watching him dance about in front of the stone wall - and contrastingly modern panic-button-sort-of-thing. I was about to join him when the stake struck bullseye. But so did the Strigoi's hand. On the panic button.

"Get out of here!" Dimitri ordered us, the volume of his voice a clear pointer to the seriousness of his instructions. Moroi and Dhampirs alike practically jumped up the stairs. Dimitri and I lagged behind, barely avoiding the bars crashing down behind us, most likely built to trap people until whatever that panic button called - probably more Strigoi - arrived to break them apart and attack. They chased us right up until we burst out into the daylight. The sun had risen further - God knows how long we'd been fighting.

I'd walked out of a door many times, obviously. But never once had I walked out of one and ended up sideways on the ground. I looked up, vision blurred. There was blood splattered on the ground already and a tall shadow was cast over my body. It was striking at all angles. _Dimitri,_ I realized. His usual god-like stance was starting to turn into a slouch; he was tired. And with tiredness came sloppiness. All guardians knew what kind of pain followed that. I couldn't let that happen, so I slowly got to my feet, regained my bearings, and buried myself in the battle.

"Rose?! What are you doing? You're bleeding!" Dimtiri hissed. "Rose, get back down!"

"No! You need all the help you can get," I replied. His next words, if he said any, were drowned out by clashing fists and yells as tired Moroi and their guardians fell to the floor. I tried to push Strigoi away from them, but there were too many, we were drowning in evil, pale monstrosities. And no one could save us now.

* * *

An arm seized me from behind, and wrapped itself around my throat, making the stake fall from my hands. I felt the air leak from my body as images of all the ones I loved flashed before my eyes. Dimitri, Mum, Dad, Eddie, Mia, Jill, Sydney, Adrian, Lissa... Even Christian. Would they miss me? Would those first three even survive this? The world dimmed and I grew weak, when, all of a sudden, the arm relinquished its hold. I stumbled and fell, looking up in the brief moments before I hit the ground. The red-head I'd ranted about, argued with, and secretly missed all my life stood over me, just as shaky as myself, clutching my stake.

"Mum?"

"Come on, Rose," she smiled weakly and pulled me to my feet. "Are you oka-"

"Hathaway!" We both turned to see one of Court's large cargo vans, screeching to a halt outside the open gates. "Get in here! All of you!" I looked at the driver...Hans?!

"Mum, you tell as many people as you can and head towards the gate with them. Keep my stake-"

"But Rose-"

"I have some unfinished business," I told her firmly, and broke off towards the now-unlocked keypad door.

* * *

The door was battered and had dents in the shining metal. Bodies covered almost every inch of the floor. But there wasn't anything but the dead. Not even the undead. Nearly everything inside was metal too, with the computers, tablets, wires, metal desks, and metal chairs. I pushed the door closed a bit.

"Let's see," I muttered, and grabbed a tablet, plugging it into a computer. I downloaded all the files I could fit into its memory. The progress bar filled up gradually, and it was at ninety-five percent when the door burst open, literally flying off this time. And once again, I was confronted with pale skin and nightmarish eyes. Defenceless. I readied my fists, hoping it'd be enough to kick and punch my way out. It wasted no time in advancing on me as the download bleeped its completion behind me. As it lunged and I kicked out at its stomach, I swatted about behind me until there was a satisfying click. The tablet was free. I grabbed it and lashed out wildly, lacking precision, but at this point it didn't matter. I raced out the door and up to the van, flinging the door to the middle section open and throwing myself inside.

"Shut the door, quick!" I yelled. Some of the Moroi occupants gave me questioning looks, but the guardians understood immediately, pressing against the door as a hand crept inside, trying to force the arm that linked to it to follow. We pressed and pressed, struggling against the sheer power of one Strigoi hand. Just a hand. "Hans!"

"What?" he called from the front.

"Drive!" I screamed as the hand snaked further inside. The car lurched and rushed off. The hand clung onto the metal with frightening strength. I could feel the fear radiating off some of the Moroi sat near us.

"Don't worry," I heard Dimitri say from somewhere amongst the cowering Moroi. He was safe. The door slammed shut behind me and I sighed internally, relieved. "There, you see? It's gone."

"What's that?" Mum asked from beside me. Damn. People shouldn't be able to sneak up on guardians, but she didn't seem to mind. I looked down at the tablet in my hands and looked over the information that showed up.

"I'm not sure, it's all jumbled, let me..." I swept my eyes over the touchscreen buttons and clicked each in turn. One was an arrow that reversed whatever effect you'd applied, another brought the tablet's selection menu up. There was something to enlarge the research, then another to shrink it - to microscopic levels, because normal levels would imply that Strigoi could have bad eyesight, and they were always saying they had better senses, right? And the final one muddled and 'unmuddled' things, depending on whether you pressed it once or twice. And that was a rather useful tool. Or so I found out, as I stared at plans for Strigoi to withstand the sun.

* * *

**A/N: One odd thing I just realised is that, while I write in both first and third person in fiction, I don't often write in first person in fanfiction. Mainly because it's what I've read most of and my writing styles would vary largely with every personality. But I felt inclined, back when I wrote this, to use first person - the books _are_ written from Rose's perspective. Ignore me, I'm rambling. Thanks for reading - leave a review, I love to hear opinions and advice (though, please, don't get out the flamethrowers).**


	12. Chapter 11

**A/N: For some reason, I'm a bit uncertain about this fic. I think, if I can find time after I finish posting these chapters, I'll edit it. Adding in descriptive paragraphs, correcting some character issues and sorting out a few things that I noticed (or had pointed out ;) ). Anyway, without further ado, I don't own VA. If I did... Do I even have to say it?**

* * *

I wasn't terrified. Terrified is when you're standing in a place where Strigoi _were_. I was petrified. When the Badica attack happened, even though I was miles from the Academy, I knew I could get back there and be (what I thought was) safe. This time there was no Academy to run to. No sunlight to hide behind, no wards to definitely keep Strigoi out-they had humans now. We were vulnerable, very vulnerable. Yes, the court had guardians, but if all the Strigoi in the world had this sunlight ability, we would never defeat. Not even with the addition of any willing fire-using Moroi. I exchanged worried glances with my mother as she leaned against her seat. The bite mark at her neck was still the crimson colour of fresh blood but the haze that ensued after being bitten seemed to have worn off for the most part. She seemed fine, if a little heavy-limbed and light-headed, but Abe kept casting guilty glances her way. Was it me that had made him feel like that? Was it that thought that was making _me_ feel guilty now?

Hans got us inside the court's wards without a hitch, Moroi and Dhampirs alike piling out of the van and heading off to their accommodation. I eyed my mother suspiciously as Abe helped her down from the van, her hands slipped into his. I felt a hand on my shoulder and turned to its owner.

"Leave it, Rose. We should get patched up first," Dimitri said, and I knew exactly what he wanted me to 'leave'. I thought on it a moment then shrugged, allowing him to lead me away from the vehicle we had just left.

"Wait, you four," Hans told us in a sombre tone as he handed the van's keys over to another guardian. He jogged over to us, not hiding his serious expression.

"What is it?" my mother asked. Her face turned just as dire as his as soon as she noticed.

"The Moroi are in uproar about all this offensive magic use-"

"Again?" I interjected. Hadn't my little speech been enough?

"Yes. Apparently they figured that if you were going to have any chance of getting out of there alive, there was going to be some offensive magic involved. It just goes against against their...beliefs, and, for some reason, they can't accept it just because it saves the lives of their people," he explained. "I need the four of you to help me calm them down, they're rioting and everything."

"Where-"

"We just got-"

"I'm not sure I-"

"No buts," he spoke over our voices. "They're in front of Queen Vasilisa's Chambers again."

* * *

The five of us stood in the parlour with the adjoining balcony that I'd spoken on before I left. I knew I'd have several questions to answer, and most likely a punishment that Lissa would try to get me out of, but right now the scariest thing was the screaming and yelling Moroi pressing against the barricaded door downstairs. Not that I wouldn't be able to beat some Moroi in a fight any day, but the simple volume of the masses scared the hell out of me. And this time the posters were bigger. Lissa and Christian had joined us, with Lissa cowering against Christian as he stared daggers at nothing and everything outside the building.

"So, any ideas?" Abe spoke up.

"I'm already changing some of their most ancient laws-how are they going to see reason on this one?" Lissa whimpered.

"Exactly," I said. Mum and Dimitri both raised an eyebrow at me. I would've found it freaky if it weren't for the situation we were in. "If you've changed something that old, this should be like a mole hole compared to that Mountain, right?"

"I don't know, Rose, I..." she shook her head and sighed. "I've taken away so many 'important' laws."

"Wait, you said you'd taken away laws?" Dimitri asked, as a thought crossed my mind.

"That's it!" all heads turned to me. "You do the opposite. Put some in. Make laws for offensive magic. You know, to stop people torturing and stuff. Like normal physical torture or murder."

"Rosie, I think that's one of your incredibly rare great ideas," Christian commented, with a smirk, nodding his approval. He looked at Lissa. "What do you say, Liss? Can you go out there and tell all those people that?"

"I...guess. But Rose, you're coming with me," she demanded as she made her way towards the door. I obediently closed the gap between us a few strides and pushed open the tinted glass doors.

"No offensive magic! No offensive magic!" chanted the crowds. Beside me, Lissa gulped. I quickly patted her hand in reassurance before I took up a protective stand by her side, ready to defend her from any attackers, but the only place anyone could really attack us from here was the roof, and that wasn't exactly the easiest place to start an ambush from.

"Silence!" Lissa commanded over the turmoil. Fortunately, that's exactly what she got. "Please! There's no need to behave like this! You're acting like animals. Offensive magic isn't a problem at the moment. Have either of the incidents since my coronation been harmful to Moroi or Dhampirs? This is very much like something else - stakes. You've never complained about those, yet one was used to kill my predecessor. They can be used for unnecessary murder and torture yet you allow them to exist and do good as well because there are laws in place to prosecute those who wrongly use them. Would you be happy if I made using offensive magic for those charges illegal?" Lissa's powerful voice radiated throughout Court, the eyes of the Moroi, royal and non-royal, fixated upon her face. _This_ was why Lissa had to be queen. Because everyone agreed with her eventually. And at that moment, she wasn't even using compulsion.

* * *

As soon as the offensive magic issue was resolved, everyone split up. Even Hans left the room, which I found strange. Wasn't he going to lecture me about running away or something? And if not him, then maybe Mum or Abe? I turned to look at the only other person left beside me. Dimitri. I saw the look in his eyes and knew what was coming next.

"Why did you run away, Roza?" he asked, stepping closer and wrapping his arms around me.

"I couldn't leave them, and I knew those people doing the rescue mission would always be...over-cautious. They'd take too long. By then people might've died," I whispered into his shirt.

"But people had already died," he reminded me.

"I know, but I mean more. Things might've happened. I needed to go. I couldn't just sit around," I insisted, but still didn't move.

"What triggered it? If you were going to leave, you would've left sooner. You wouldn't have thrown yourself into work for a whole week."

"These two guardians were talking about me. Saying they were surprised I hadn't run away already. So then I thought, if it's expected, why can't I?" I said, looking up at him. He gritted his teeth, as if he'd like to give those two guardians a piece of his mind-and his fist. But his features softened when he gazed down at me.

"Just don't run away like that again. At least, not without me," he gave me a smile and turned towards the door. "Come on, let's go to the clinic."

"You mean my second home?" I ask, smirking. He laughed.

_God, I love that laugh._

* * *

**A/N: I cut out a few lines there and changed them because they were annoying me. :) Thanks for reading!**


	13. Chapter 12

**A/N: *breathes a sigh of relief* This week's been a mad rush but, at last, I've gotten prepared for the forum celebration I'm headed to on Sunday. So, I'm here with another chapter. I don't own VA and I hope you like this one.**

* * *

A week passed and, surprisingly, no one said a word about a punishment of any sort for my escapades, or even a lecture. Normally I'd be relieved that Lissa had gone and got me out of whatever trouble I was in but this seemed different, like people were almost too distracted or pre-occupied by something to pay any attention to me (every time I tried to get 'in the loop', the loop moved). And it wasn't until now that I found out why.

"Roza, you need to get up. We're going somewhere," Dimitri whispered in my ear as he extracted himself from the covers. Images of him and me on a last minute holiday out of here invaded my mind, but I shook them off as I saw his rushed expression. I followed his example of quickly pulling on my guardian uniform and commandeered the ensuite bathroom, applying a thin layer of make up and sweeping my hair into a suitable bun.

"How do I look, Comrade?" I called to him, and did a quick twirl that - if you asked me - I would've called a spin.

"Wonderful, as always. Are you ready? Lissa said we needed to be at the voting halls soon," he smiled at me.

"The voting halls? Why those?" I shot him a confused look. He held his hand up to stop me from saying anything further.

"You'll find out when we get there."

The voting halls were (naturally) large and (naturally) had a lot of seats. The stands were a mixture Moroi, off-duty Guardians, Court Dhampirs like Ambrose, and the royal Moroi that didn't own the family's title of 'Prince' or 'Princess'. And then there was the panel; Tarus, Voda, Lazar, Zeklos, Ivashkov, Conta, Szelsky, Ozera, Drozdov, Dashkov, Badica, and an empty seat where Jill would've been. If Lissa had still been a princess, Jill would've become 'Lady Mastrano Dragomir' or just 'Lady Dragomir' upon graduation, but Lissa was queen now which meant her quorum, and only relative, was a princess - and the only thing keeping her on the throne. _That_ made Jill the next target of Lissa's enemies. Once the quorum law was out of the was and there were more Dragomirs, neither would be at risk, but, right then, that wasn't the case.

"Rose!" Lissa shouted to me, rushing over just as I was about to slip into formation with the rest of the guardians. "You're here."

"Liss, I thought you said you weren't going to be able to abolish that quorum law for a whi-"

"No, no, that's not it. This is about the laws for offensive magic. Apparently it's easier to add new ones than it is to get rid of them," she replied, as she gave me a bright grin. "I think I've won most of the families over. I just hope it's enough..."

"Don't worry, it will be," I patted her shoulder hurriedly and left to join the other guardians.

"All those for the new law, please raise your hands," Lissa said. Some sarcastic part of me got the clever idea to raise mine but my responsible part pushed it back. Lissa didn't need me making her look back every time she got me out of trouble. The Ozera prince and the newly crowned Badica princess were the first to raise their hands.

_Of course they would,_ I thought. _Christian's family control fire and the Badicas must be tired of slowly getting killed,_ and, as if agreeing with my reasoning, the Moroi representing the Drozdov line raised their hand. Another attack victim. Lazar and Tarus soon followed - the former wanted rules in place to stop things like Avery happening, and the latter had relatives trained by Queen Tatiana, before Tasha Ozera murdered her, even if one of them (Daniella) was in prison. I grimaced at the thought of _her_ but pushed it out of my mind just in time to see the Ivashkov representative join the supporting side. I guessed good things could come out of bad happenings. Like high treason. By suggesting the law be made, Lissa automatically supported it, and as the only Dragomir there, she had to take Jill's position. So that meant Dragomir, Ozera, Badica, Drozdov, Lazar, Tarus, and Ivashkov were all on the same side. Seven out of twelve. I saw a relieved beam spread over Lissa's face.

"Dismissed!"

* * *

The party afterwards wasn't what I expected it to be. I expected it to be a gigantic royal function with snooty people in suits and ball gowns and dozens of guardians trailing around silently after their Moroi. But it wasn't. Our group consisted of me, Lissa, Dimitri, Christian, my parents, Eddie, Mia, Sonya, Mikhail, and a few other Moroi and old school friends.

Lissa had asked Ambrose if he would join us and he set up his own little salon-spa-sort-of-thing in the corner. Most of the Moroi were drinking merrily and making jokes, with their guardians joining in but keeping their systems clear of alcohol. Mostly. It was safe, really, and the official party wasn't until two days later, so nobody had to worry about hangovers. They had several days off that I liked to say were the equivalent of bank holidays. There was karaoke as well. Or, rather, there was a karaoke machine that Abe smuggled into the room and Christian snatched from him. The two looked about ready to set each other on fire just over who got to sing first, and normally I should've intervened, especially in light of my responsibility to my old man and my charge's boyfriend, but they couldn't do any real harm. Besides, it was sort of amusing.

After a few rounds of songs, mostly part of some extreme competition between Abe and Christian, Christian pushed Abe off the stage and took his turn.

"Alright, listen up everybody, I have an announcement to make!" Christian voiced through the microphone.

"You just made one, Sparky! Step off the stage so some real singers can get up there!" I called back, earning a wave of giggles and chuckles from both the Moroi and the Dhampirs in the room.

"Shut up, Rosie. Can I have Lissa Dragomir stand just in front of the stage, please?" he said, still speaking into the microphone. Lissa looked up from the drink she was currently trying to find the nerve to down (her and some other Moroi were playing Truth or Dare, I always thought Lissa was a bit too...nice...for that game), and sent Christian a grateful glance as she put the glass down and walked across to our makeshift stage in the empty flat we were using. Just as she stopped in front of him, music started, and he launched into a very familiar Bruno Mars song; 'Marry You'. She gasped in all the right places, and even more so when he pulled out a black velvet box and opened the lid.

It was one of the most beautiful things I had ever seen - the event and the ring. Of course, she would accept. And that she did. The two embraced and kissed.

"Get a room!" I jested. They broke apart and laughed.

"We already have one, Rose," Christian smirked. Lissa ran out of his arms and into mine, practically throwing herself at me.

"Rose, this is amazing! You have to help me plan! Please?" she asked excitedly. I smiled as joy leapt around inside me.

"Sure, I'd love to," I replied in a daze, but I couldn't help feeling a tiny twinge of jealousy underneath that joy.

* * *

**A/N: I won't lie, I've been manic this week and I'm still getting this unsure feeling. Anyway, I won't be able to do anything about it until I finish the projects I've stuffed my 'schedule' full of. :/ Thanks for reading! If you'd like to comment, I'd love it if you left a review. They're great to get. :) See you soon!**


	14. Chapter 13

**A/N: First of all, I'm not entirely happy with this chapter (Rose seems to go from attitude to superiority complex) but I won't have chance to edit it yet. :/ I'm now betaing for four people and writing four projects on here and FictionPress alone.**

**Anyway, I own nothing and hope you enjoy.**

* * *

"Rose, this is going to be so exciting! We're going dress shopping!" Lissa squealed as we strolled down to the royal dress-fitter's rooms the following day. I couldn't help the smile that found its way to my face. Of course I was happy and excited too, glad that my friend was finally getting her happily ever after and nothing - well, almost nothing - could stop her. Yet I still felt that tiny tinge of jealousy present.

"Calm down, Liss," I laughed. Regardless of my attempts to quell her hyperactivity, she practically skipped through the shop doorway. I joined her with a lazy smile and posture, but secretly still on alert. The old dress fitter and her assistant gave us a look that made me think that our appearance had just made their day. For some reason, I didn't doubt it had. After all, what was 'just the Dragomir Queen and one of her guardians' to royal Moroi was 'The Amazing Teenage Spirit Queen and The Guardian Who Escaped High Treason Charges' to a pair of lowly dress-fitters. Looks of adoration didn't really cover it.

"Your Majesty! Guardian Hathaway! What can I do for you?" the dress fitter asked, placing a piece of cloth she'd been fumbling with onto a pile beside her hobbling over to us. Although she didn't realize it, the use of my title stung. Another reminder that, while I wasn't single, I was still Rose Hathaway, and not Rose Belikova. I fully intended on being so, but if time wouldn't wait for a man, I wouldn't wait for him either.

"I'd like to try on some wedding dresses," Lissa told her, barely able to contain her excitement. By now, the news has reached the rest of Court. Let's just say only half of them were partying.

"Of course, congratulations! Right this way... No bridesmaids?" she said, all at once, and turned to hobble several racks of dresses and fabric in every shade of white, cream, and ivory you could imagine.

"Oh, we haven't chosen those yet..." Lissa trailed off as she followed, laughing nervously.

"I thought you and Christian decided on Me, Mia, Jill, and Sydney?" I interrupted. Lissa looked thoughtful then nodded slowly.

"Yes, we did. But Jill can't be back here until I clear the quorum law. And Sydney can only be here for the wedding, not the fittings - she's not allowed to leave that much."

"Then move the wedding back until the quorum law's cleared!" I told her. I felt slightly guilty for saying it - was I subconsciously trying to delay her wedding so I would be engaged, maybe even married, by the time it happened? Well, that and Lissa gave me a 'love-dazed puppy' look, one that said waiting that long would be completely unacceptable.

"That's a lovely idea! Your Majesty, if I could just have Princess Dragomir and Miss Sydney's measurements, then I could have dresses prepared for them both," the dress-fitter told us eagerly. I gave Lissa a pleading look and she sighed and nodded. "Let's take a look at some fabrics, then!"

We looked through every fabric. Alright, that's an exaggeration, we only looked through half of them. But that was a very big half. I was joking when I said the dress-fitter had every shade of white, cream, and ivory either, because she really did (even if it is impossible to get different shades of white). Now that she was squealing over silk and velvet, Lissa definitely wasn't as peeved that I'd sort-of-forced her into asking Christian (and he'd definitely agree is _she_ asked) to push their wedding back for who-knows-how-many months so Jill and Sydney could attend. Don't get me wrong, she wanted them to be there just as much as she wanted the wedding, I could tell from her expressions alone, but she was the kind that dreamed of being a princess and having her prince charming as a little girl (while I dreamed of a non-existent happy family), and she was Queen now, so who could stop her from getting her Prince Charming? Oh, that's right, me.

* * *

So, despite her inital disappointment, Lissa took well to the thought of pushing the wedding date back, even though they hadn't set one yet. Christian suggested that she video chatted with Jill and Sydney. His excuse was that she needed to know their measurements, but I could tell what he was really doing - Lissa had wanted to contact her half-sister for a while but had been too scared that she'd look weak and that'd cause even more riot about her being young and unstable. Christian and I had been unknowingly working together to find some way out for her, and it had finally worked. He was unusually happy for the rest of the day. Well, unusual for him. Just then, an excited voice pulled me out of my thoughts.

"Rose, I'm chatting with Jill, she wants to say hi," Lissa called from her bedroom door. I gave her a genuine smile and stood from the sofa, where I'd been flipping through flower magazines, joining her on the soft velvet bed covers.

"Hi," I waved at the image of Jill on the laptop screen.

"Hey," she replied, returning it weakly.

"You don't look too good..." Lissa looked at Jill in that big-sister-concerned way that I'd only recently gotten used to.

"It's nothing. It's just the sun here when we're outside in P.E. It's tiring. And the teacher doesn't really like it at all, but, you know, I can't..."

"...Tell her, we know. Have you told Sydney and Eddie, are they doing anything?" it was me that quizzed her this time.

"Sydney knows, I don't know about Eddie. There's not much they can do. They pass it off as any allergy, though, and they're trying to get help. This guy called Micah's helping too," Jill clapped her hand over her mouth. I grinned. Result.

"You weren't supposed to tell us that, were you?"

"No, I thought 'they don't need more to worry about'... Some people think he likes me, some don't. There's a bit of arguing," she replied, blushing. "Enough about me, what did you call me for, Liss?"

"Guess what? Christian and I are getting married!" Lissa had her lips stuck in a super-smile, but it didn't bother me that she was getting over-excited. I was feeling kind of...bubbly...myself.

"Really? Wow! Who are the bridesmaids?" Jill shifted her position on the bed she sat on and looked at us with a new interest. Lissa launched into an eager reply.

"Well, that's the thing. We have Rose, and Mia, but we wanted to have you and Sydney as well. The dress-fitter says we can wait until after the quorum law is abolished but we need your measurements so we can make the dresses and then have the wedding shortly after. If you're okay with being bridesmaids..."

"I'll talk to Sydney about it. And get our measurements. See you later, Liss, Rose?"

"See you later," I replied.

"Bye Jill!" Lissa said, and Jill's Moroi-pale face disappeared from the screen.

* * *

The next few days consisted mainly of attending parties and making arrangements, all set for when that crucial law was abolished. I came home from a party early, satisfied that there were enough guardians there to both control the drunken Moroi and protect them from Strigoi. I closed the door quietly, afraid to wake Dimitri if he'd fallen asleep. Instead I heard a quiet muttering in the living room. I inched up to the door and listened in.

"Yes, but we can't keep sneaking around like this," he sighed. There were a few seconds of silence and then he nodded to himself. "I know... I just don't know how to tell her. How to 'break the news'," Dimitri's tone was one I couldn't read, just like his expression, but I'd already heard enough. I knew Dimitri well enough to say that he wasn't a man that played with people, nor did he cheat notoriously, but you couldn't mistake the language of that conversation... Could you? I backed slowly out the door, not paying attention to the path ahead of me, but marching off into the night. Minutes later, I bumped into someone I really expected to see in her chambers, reading catalogues, or drinking the night away with Sparks-a-lot.

"Lissa?" the surprise was clear in my voice.

"Hey, Rose! Wait, what's wrong?" her gleeful face turned concerned and she put a hand on my arm. The warmth of her gloved fingers masked the chilled feeling my skin had adopted, but it certainly didn't cover the betrayal that swam inside my heart.

"He cheated on me, Lissa. Dimitri cheated on me."

* * *

**A/N: That's all for now. Let me know what you think - anything that doesn't touch on flaming is welcome but please take into account that I won't edit this until after it's all posted. But I'll also edit and post the extra scenes that were born of one of my ships (they'll be clearly labelled) and the odd little piece (called 'Sunset') that's wedged before the Epilogue of this and after the last chapter. There may also be a sequel (don't ask me what it's called yet, give me a day or two), to resolve unresolved issues at the end of this.**


	15. Chapter 14

**A/N: I've got it down that I'm going to edit this story when possible, pad it out and correct mistakes. But, as for how many chapters are left to post, there's this one, Chapter 15 and an Epilogue. Oh, and some extras - including Janine/Abe shippy snippets and an all-round little one-shot that will all be posted separately (the snippets in one story, the one-shot in another). Anyway, I think that's all I need to say. I own nothing. Enjoy! :)**

* * *

Lissa stared at me, dumbfounded for a moment.

"Rose, are you feeling alright?" she asked finally as she shot me another concerned look. Her green eyes were filled with worry and glazed with pity, but right now I didn't want that.

"Of course I'm not, Liss. I think he cheated on me!" I replied, desperate for her to understand. She nodded slowly and seemed to accept it, but only by a little.

"How do you know?" the question was the one that brought a single teardrop to my eye. Was I crying at some kind of one-month regular interval? This time last month I'd just read my parents' names on a list of the dead and the taken after a Strigoi attack. Now there was some a little less life-threatening, but still as heart-breaking, making me shed tears.

"I heard him talking to someone on the phone. You couldn't mistake the conversation. He was 'tired of sneaking around' and 'didn't know how to tell me'," I scowled.

"Then why don't you just confront him? You'd never usually be afraid to do that...would you? Or is there something else? I mean, Dimitri doesn't seem the type to cheat and-"

"Yes, there is, alright?! Look, I'm really happy for you and Christian in getting engaged, and the wedding's great, even if we have to wait until after the law's abolished, but I'm kind of jealous because _he_ hasn't thought to give me that commitment, even if our relationship is rare, and now I know why!" I ranted, feeling the blood rush to my cheeks in an angry blush. Lissa looked shocked for the second time in the conversation we'd been having.

"Rose... I-I'm sorry. I didn't know you felt that way. I'll tone down my excitement, if it's hurting," she smiled awkwardly, and it was my turn to gape in surprise.

"I thought you'd react differently... I mean, because of the darkness," I replied, puzzled. She'd been using spirit-I'd seen her do it. Surely there'd be darkness, right?

"I was meaning to tell you something," she said. She held out her hand-the same one that had the engagement ring on - and there was a ring I didn't recognize. A silver ring. "It's a healing charm. It's very strong, so making it gives me some darkness, but because it's so strong, it heals the darkness from me and lasts quite a while."

"Wow, Lissa, this is...great news. How long have you been using them?" I asked, brushing a finger over the surface of the ring.

"A week or so. It keeps the stress of the wedding away too."

"Your worse half must be happy about that, then, huh?" I teased, a faint smirk forming on my lips.

"Talking of worse halves, we need to confront yours," she replied. Sometimes I think I'm rubbing off on her way too much. I turned back towards my accommodation building, but I felt Lissa's hand on my arm.

"No, not now. Come back to my place and we can have a coffee-"

"I didn't know you drunk coffee. Something else, maybe?"

"Alright, we can have a hot chocolate, I'll tell you my plan and then you go back home, as if nothing happened. Gives him longer to wallow in his guilt," she shrugged. I stared at her in disbelief.

"You're getting way too evil for my liking."

"I thought you liked evil," Lissa winked, turned in the direction of her Chambers, and gestured forward in a 'sisters first' way. Oh, this was going to be fun.

Lissa collapsed down next to me on the sofa, two steaming patterned mugs in her hands. She handed a spiral-covered one to me with a smile and took a sip from her own striped mug. The warmth of the chocolatey brown liquid spread through my chilled hands. Not looking up, I launched into conversation.

"So, what's your 'plan'?" I asked eagerly, testing the contents of the cup with my little finger. An uncharacteristic smirk grew on Lissa's face.

"We act entirely oblivious, right up until tomorrow," she told me. Seeing the confused look on my face, she swiftly continued, "I'm having a picnic in one of  
the royal gardens. Don't you remember me saying that?"

"I...might've been drunk," I confessed with mock guilt. I'd only gotten drunk a handful of times since leaving the academy, so I had a reason to feel slightly guilty. Whereas when I was there, I had a 'reputation'. In other words nobody really minded me getting drunk then.

"Oh, Rose," Lissa laughed, pulling me from my thoughts. "Anyway, you, Dimitri, Chris, Mia, Eddie, and your parents are coming. Just some friend time."

"How is friend time and my murderous parentage going to help me confront Dimitri?" I asked, incredulous.

"They aren't," she responded. I glared at her. "But the setting is," at that, I stopped glaring. "Those gardens are big. Get him alone then spill the beans. Make it look like a lovey-dovey walk until you're out of sight."

"What do I do then? What if he tries to deny it?"

"Persist. Make sure he tells you. Just don't resort to violence unless you know he's cheating. And don't break any laws."

"Does that include castrating him?"

"I pretty much think it does. Assault, or something. Grievous Bodily Harm," Lissa replied with amusement, watching as I finished off my drink and placed it on the coffee table beside us.

"Such a shame," I grinned. She shook her head and picked the drink up from the side, taking it into the kitchen. I stood, stretching my limbs to shake away the semi-numb feeling that had gathered in them. "I should be going now."

"Oh. See you tomorrow then," Lissa called from the kitchen.

"See you," and I left.

* * *

The next day came all too easily. I'd nearly been caught by Dimitri glaring at him or practicing what I was going to say in front of the mirror, but he seemed unaffected by it. We headed down to the aforementioned garden, hand-in-hand, and I couldn't help but agree with Lissa. It _was_ big. No, forget big, it was enormous. Not as big as court, or the academy, but certainly large for a garden. Then again, that was the way most royal things were. Large and extravagant. My eyes swept over the glitter beads of water that fell from the central water fountain, the neatly cut shrubbery, and the bright floral displays. Yep, extravagant certainly described this.

"Rose!" I turned and saw Mia rushing towards me, dropping someone's hand to pull me into a tight embrace. I hugged her back and pulled away after a few seconds.

"Hey Mia, how's it going?" I asked,scanning her face for any signs of negative emotion. None. And of course, she wasn't wasn't physically injured. My eyes snapped to the companion she'd been holding hands with. If I wasn't relatively good at emotional control, I would've freaked out. Sort of. The guy she'd been holding hands with was Eddie.

"Great! What are you l... Oh, yeah. I'm going out with Eddie. We were going to tell you guys at the picnic... You're not angry, are you?" she blurted out. I stifled a laugh.

"No, of course not. I'm happy for you two. Let's go and meet Lissa. I'm starving..." behind Mia, Eddie rolled his eyes. "Well, Castile, I've got to eat, haven't I?"

"Okay, but keep your hands off my food!" he warned, a playful expression dancing upon his features.

"Now why would I touch your food?" I batted my eyelashes and marched over to where Lissa and Christian sat with my parents, with Christian's arm encircling Lissa's waist. As if Dimitri cheating, Lissa turning into a madwoman, and Eddie dating Mia weren't enough, Fate just had to go and shock me again by seeing my mother - yes, my badass guardian mother - resting against my father's shoulder, the hair she'd only recently begun to grow properly splayed over his back, and him gazing adoringly down at her. The entire scene (however cute it was) screamed the golden question: did I really want another sibling? The answer was no. At least not if I had to see it in the making.

"Hi, sit down!" Lissa beamed, patting the blanket-covered grass. We obliged, well all except me and Dimitri.

"Is it okay if me and Comrade here check this place out before we eat?" I asked. There were mingled nods and sounds of approval. I slipped my hand into Dimitri's again, and strolled with him into a long stretch of artistically shaped shrubs.

"Don't check each other our too much while you're at it! And don't get it at _it_ either!" Eddie yelled after us. I snorted.

"Comrade, I have a question."

"As it happens, Roza, so do I," he chuckled.

"You go first," I said, trying to sound courteous. I was curious now, and I doubted he'd say whatever it was after I confronted him. Maybe he was confessing...

"As you wish," he said. And that's when I was startled by something for the fifth time in twenty-four hours; he dropped onto one knee.

* * *

**A/N: Another walk down memory lane. :P Again, if you're going to give constructive criticism... By all means, do it. But keep in mind that this was written a ****_long _****time ago. Parts of it sound a little juvenile, I know. But this was my 'baby' when I wrote it. So I want to go back to this after I'm done and change it up a little. Just not flaming, eh? Good. ;) Thanks for reading!**


	16. Chapter 15

**A/N: Thanks for the lovely reviews last chapter, I'm glad you're enjoying it. :) I can now reveal that there'll be a sequel to this - after this is edited, of course. It'll be called vampire Academy: Sunlight and it'll require me reading and re-reading a few books. XD The cover goes by an orange theme and has a fancy-shmancy sun, and a 'curly design' on it. Probably not good enough to feed the imagination just by description. :P Anyway, here's the second-to-last update. I don't own VA but I ****_do_**** hope you enjoy this.**

* * *

"Rosemarie Hathaway, will you marry me?"

Honestly, before I met Dimitri, those are six words I never thought I'd hear. But now, as I gazed down into those adoring brown orbs, I realized something: fairy tales can come true. I mean, the princess in Sleeping Beauty didn't just get her prince right away, she had to sleep for days and days (not that I'd mind that) while he cut through the overgrown vines. It was just ironic we were in a garden at the minute. My mind flashed back to all the memories I had of Dimitri, or rather, the more memorable ones. The time we first met, the time he told me to wear my hair up, me falling through that bench, the lust charm, Natalie attacking me, the Badica attack, my first time staking a dummy, our chat after my mother shouted at me for the dress I wore at the party, our first time, losing him, some events in Russia, even the 'dream' Avery tried to put me in... The alleyway where he complimented my hair... Every single memory flitted through my mind. I'd had my ups and downs with everyone, mending the relationships I needed to: like my mother. But with Dimitri, I'd had so many more ups and downs. And yet, we were still here, about to get engaged like normal people. We'd never be that, but it didn't stop us trying.

"Yes!" it came out as a squeal, but I didn't really care. "Yes! If there's plenty of donuts at the reception and honeymoon, that is," I added, winking as he slid the ring onto my finger. He chuckled. Yep, I think I've got the squeal covered.

"Whatever you wish, Roza," he grinned. I threw myself into his arms and I swear it took a good few minutes before we pulled away and started back towards the picnic.

"Hathaway, what did I say?" Eddie teased when Dimitri and I approached, him with an arm wrapped around my waist, me grinning like I'd just won a bucket of chocolate-covered donuts. In some sense, I had.

"It's Belikova, actually, Castile," I smirked, holding my hand spread-eagle in front of me. The ring was really a play on my name, but I didn't mind-it was beautiful. A red-and-purple stone had been carved into a rose and placed in the centre of a glimmering golden band. It fit perfectly.

"Then that means Mission Hathaway-Extinction is complete, Belikov!" I turned and saw my mother and Abe walking towards the picnic mat as well. Wait, what? 'Mission Hathaway-Extinction'? Abe strode towards Dimitri and held his hand out to shake. Dimitri took it happily, a smirk on his face.

"Is it just me," my mother began, now beside me, "or do you think they planned this?"

"Hmm," I glanced between Abe and Dimitri. "Yep, they definitely planned it. So he proposed to you? Let's see the ring!"

"Watch it Rosie, you might actually turn into a girl," Christian commented, pulling the meat from something that looked like a chicken wing. I stuck my tongue out at him and turned my attention back to my mum, who held out a ring. I was equally as beautiful as mine. A platinum band with a gem in a tone that vaguely resembled turquoise in the center, with a green one on its right side and a blue one on its left.

"It's beautiful. This is mine," I showed her my ring. She laughed a little and shook her head.

"Trust the two of them to play up on the fact that your name is Rose... I don't know how they did it, to be honest, I had no clue... What about you?"

"Well, I caught Dimitri on the phone...except, I thought he was cheating," I said slowly. Her eyes widened, and I couldn't help the giggle that left my mouth. "Don't worry, he doesn't know. Liss does, but she's obviously figured it out by now. Although, he seriously needs a lesson on how to _not_ sound like you're cheating when talking to your father-in-law. He was saying things like 'we can't sneak around much longer' and all that."

"And you didn't kill him on the spot like a true Hathaway?" she raised an eyebrow.

"We're getting extinct, remember?"

"We could always argue that we want a double barrel or we're staying Hathaways..." the mischievous grin on her face made me question whether my bad side was actually paternal.

"Mazur-Hathaway? Dodgy if you ask me..." I laughed. My father, who just happened to be eavesdropping on us sent me a glare. "Sorry, Old man."

"Belikova-Hathaway doesn't sound any better."

* * *

"I still can't believe you're engaged!" Lissa squeaked as we gnawed our way through the ample 'picnic' she'd had the royal kitchens put together. I'd have to thank whoever made it later-and ask for more.

"Yeah, quit making me feel left out," Mia mock-groaned. There was collective laughter but Eddie smiled down at Mia. She shook her head. "It's alright, babe."

"You sure? I can get you one if you like. But it comes out of your shoe money," he grinned. She pretended to look horrified, extracting more chuckles from our little group.

"He's right, though, you know. Have you seen a guardian paycheck? They pay well, but not _that_ well," my mum commented.

"I haven't really had time to see a paycheck this month, Mum. I've been too busy seeing stakes and donuts," I replied, smirking. "Dimitri?"

"She's right. It's lucky we're both guardians or we'd not be able to keep ourselves afloat," he nodded.

"Then how did you..." my mum trailed off, her eyes flitting from my ring to Dimitri, until it dawned on her. "Ibrahim."

"Yes dear?" he wiggled his eyebrows.

"How many illegal substances did you have to ship into the country for this one?"

"Oh, not much more than twenty."

A while later, we'd said goodbye to Mia and Eddie and the remaining six of us were walking through the gardens, not really paying attention to the bright plant life all around us.

"Why don't we have a triple wedding?" Lissa suggested.

"I think the aisle might get a little crowded," Christian sniggered.

"Are you implying my fiancée, and daughter are fat?" Abe asked Christian. A smirk spread over my face as Christian visibly paled.

"No, of course not, Mr Mazur," he replied quickly. Did I mentioned I love my dad?

"Good, good. I actually think that's a good idea. A triple wedding," Abe said. There were sounds and nods of agreement, but I think I was the only one that could see the problem with that. Either that or most people were love-struck or scared.

"Just one problem with that," I interjected, as all eyes fell on me. "No one to give us away. Our fathers either won't be here, no offense," I nodded to Mum and Lissa, "or otherwise occupied," I pointed to Abe. "There are no other men related to us that could take that position."

"Then we'll have to pick between people we're friends with," Dimitri told me.

"Who, though?"

"Adrian?" Lissa suggested.

"If he has to make a toast with _real _alcohol, then no," Christian said.

"He'll get drunk if he wants to whether he makes a toast with it or not. Can't stop him drinking with the other guests," I said. Although poor Jill would have to suffer the after-effects.

"Eddie?" Lissa tried again. God, we were a terrible set of three. Or six. Depending on who you counted. I thought for a moment then nodded. I heard Dimitri's 'yes, that would work' from beside me and smiled. Christian would agree to whatever Lissa would (minus the Adrian thing). Just my parents now.

"He's a nice guy," my mum nodded too. "Abe?"

"If you five like him and Rose hasn't murdered him for the comment he made earlier, then I think he's worthy," he replied. I couldn't help a snort. He looked at me questioningly.

"'Worthy'? How old are you?"

"None of your business, Kiz."

"Exactly," I smirked. In the background Lissa was talking excitedly to Christian, who seemed like he'd need an aspirin soon. Yeah, this was going to be an interesting wedding.

* * *

**A/N: I've probably said this a thousand times already - this chapter felt too short. And you've probably heard this a lot too - I can't fix it just yet. XD Anyway, thanks for reading! Just the prologue left now. And, on a side note, I'm looking into getting Amazon KDP - Kindle Direct Publishing. I won't be able to publish fanfiction but I can write regular fiction. Although there's no telling yet, if I get it, you'll be the first to know. If I don't, I most likely will in a few years' time. And that's all. Bye!**


	17. Epilogue

**A/N: Welcome to the final chapter - or, rather, the epilogue. As usual, I own nothing and this is an old version of this story. While I love it like a baby, it's not the same standard as my current work. I believe. But the epilogue is larger than any other chapter. XD _You _work out the logic there... Anyway, as I'll say later in this chapter, thank you so much for reading and sticking with me. Your reviews are like chocolate. :P And here are a few replies:**

**Maddy - Thank you! :) You might find the bottom A/N (*points further down the page*) interesting.**

**Kitty - The isle would have to be wide, right? I guess triple weddings aren't to everyone's taste. :P I've certainly never been to one - or seen one, for that matter.**

* * *

I couldn't believe it. The day had finally come. Of course, it wasn't just my day, it was my parents', Lissa's, Dimitri's, and Christian's day too. But there wasn't anyone I'd rather share it with. The dresses were stunning, the flowers were spectacular, and everything else was utterly amazing. Somehow, it just was. Lissa's dress was a slight-mint-green-coloured strapless lace-up with sparkling emerald jewellery and a heart-shaped neckline. Mine was white with a red tint, and some strange kind of V-neck that still allowed it to be strapless, but still leave something to the imagination. My mother's was a deep ivory dress with at least a forearm's worth of silky material splaying out from the back and sides in a semi-circular way. It wasn't strapless, instead it had two straps, but suited her just as well as if it had been. We all had our hair down (by now, my mum's had grown considerably) and in various styles of curls or straightness. We were a big room at Court's church with Jill, Mia, Viktoria and Sydney. The law hadn't been abolished but we'd found a way to sneak them out, and that was enough. Mia was putting the finishing touches to Viktoria's hair, while Jill twirled by the mirrors and assured Sydney that everything would be just fine.

* * *

Because of the contrasting dress themes the three of us had gone for, we decided the bridesmaids would be in pure white dresses with a band of jewels on it in whatever colour they wanted. Jill had taken a pale blue that went well with the light and shadow the dress had in the way it was pulled together at her chest. Mia had gone for peach, Viktoria for deep purple, and Sydney for a yellowy-orange. Overall, we didn't look bad. There were three bouquets on the side for us to throw. God, I hope that old wives' tale about whoever catches it isn't true... After all, we had way too many possible marriages here. Like Mia and Eddie. Or Sydney and Adrian - we'd decided it was okay for him to be the best man. He didn't seem to be drinking so much recently, according to Sydney. Just then, some peeked their head around the door. A smile spread across my face-Eddie.

"Is it time already?" Lissa asked, surprised.

"Yep," he grinned, stepping inside and closing the door. "I told the co-ordinator we could deal with the procession order, so the only thing they'd have to do was join you and the three whipped kings in holy matrimony. Not all of you together, of course..."

"What about bridesmaids, brides, and 'father'?" Mia suggested as she turned off the hair equipment in the room. I laughed at her plug-turning-off spree. "Wouldn't want your wedding to get more fiery than it already is, would we?"

"Sounds good. The order, I mean," Mum commented, blushing. You'd think it was strange to see your badass guardian mother getting married to your dad _and_ nervously blushing, but strange was kind of my middle name by now, right? Besides, it was cute too. Even better than having your mum tell you what it was like when she got married while you're about to do the same; you're actually getting married at the same wedding as her on the same day. Wonderful mother-daughter bonding.

"Yeah. Liss?" I asked Lissa, my voice pitched a little higher than usual from the pure adrenaline of excitement.

"Yeah!" Lissa, it appeared, was worse than me. I straightened out my dress and followed my four bridesmaids, best friend, and mum out the door. Eddie gave me a reassuring pat on the shoulder and we got into the order we'd discussed, standing at the door at the end of the corridor, waiting to walk inside. An announcement came over the loudspeaker.

"Attention all, please rise and welcome Her Majesty, Queen Vasilisa Dragomir."

My eyes fell on Lissa with that ecstatic smile still plastered to my lips.

"Guardian Rosemarie Hathaway."

I took a deep breath.

"Guardian Janine Hathaway."

Mum and I exchanged joyful glances as we briefly clasped hands.

"Princess Jillian Mastrano Dragomir."

Jill blushed, still struggling with her new title.

"Miss Mia Rinaldi."

Mia checked to see if her hair was still perfect.

"Miss Viktoria Belikova."

Viktoria beamed

"Miss Sydney Sage."

Sydney blushed (her and Jill should go for a twin acting award, in my opinion).

"And Mister Edison Castile." And the announcement ended, the grand doors swinging open.

Everyone's eyes landed on us. An array of gasps erupted from the crowd. People were transfixed. Upon _us_. Not just our outfits - _us_. But we weren't paying attention to them. Jill, Mia, Viktoria, and Sydney had taken their seats and we now had a clear view of the three men at the front. One black-haired and blue-eyed with pale skin, one dark-haired and dark-eyed with darker skin, and finally, one brown-haired and brown-eyed, and extremely tall, one which I could proudly call mine. And there was love in their eyes. The kind of love that would still be there even if you got hit by a train. At full speed. With a massive food carriage.

In reality, I didn't pay much attention to what the priest was saying. Sure, I kept up, enough to know when to tune in and out. When we got to the 'I do's, I concentrated. Lissa and Christian were first, saying their vows, exchanging beautiful golden rings with 'I love you' engraved in them and filled with what must have been something like melted emerald, and then holding hands and waiting. Dimitri and I were next. The promises were the exact same, but for us they meant different things. That's just the way it was. And that's what made it so much greater to be standing up there at the altar with five of the people I loved most in the world. The rings Dimitri and I had contained the same message, just in Russian, alongside our Russian nickname - well, mine was Roza but I insisted on Comrade for him. I beamed up at him as I slid his onto his finger. And we waited as my parents' said their vows. I wonder if they'd ever gotten married before, or if he'd ever asked before... I guess it didn't matter now. Their rings were a golden and white twist. My grin grew wider. Everything was perfect. At least that's the way it felt. I knew there were other things to sort out, but I would be ready when they came around. My eyes swept over the audience. Everyone I knew I would ever need was in that crowd or up here. And then that line came.

"You may now kiss your bride," I would've laughed at the alteration of the sentence for our unique situation, but my lips met with Dimitri's and the world came to a stand still. His soft lips moving against mine was the best sensation in the world. Even if I had kissed him countless times before. I'd remember this kiss forever.

* * *

"Speech! Speech!" Eddie called from one end of the giant table at the wedding reception. He tapped his spoon against the glass while stood on the seat of his chair, trying to get the attention of our messed up little family.

"Watch it, Castile! I paid for those!" Christian yelled back.

"No, you didn't, Chris, I did," Lissa told him.

"Exactly, I paid for them!" Christian said. Dodgy logic, anyone?

"Didn't know you'd had a gender change, Christina." I winked. My mum was in fits of laughter, leaning against a smirking Abe's shoulder. Beside me, Dimitri chuckled, and it vibrated through me with a strange warmth. Christian scowled and Lissa made a 'turn that frown upside down' motion. I cracked out laughing. A few moments later, Eddie coughed and silence was finally achieved. Mostly, anyway.

"Right, by some weird sense, I was chosen to give these three away. I don't even want to know who I got with to have them. And why one of them's twenty years older than the other two."

Laughter.

"But they're great people and I'd do that again a million times. With correct payment, obviously. And a new suit."

More laughter.

"I wish you the best of luck. All six of you." He bowed and sat down. Next, Adrian stood. Boy, this was going to be interesting.

"I've had my fair share of ups and downs with all of you. I've beaten round the bush with Little Dhampir, fought with Cradle Robber, fought with Fire Crotch, trained with my cousin over here, and nearly lost my most prized body part to Big Dhampir and The Turkish-Russian Mafia." He smirked. We responded with chuckles. "And it's changed me. I've been a bit of a bad boy, so that's why I was surprised when you asked me to be your best man. My ever-growing ego aside, Good Luck, and enjoy marriage. Just don't start your honeymoon until you get behind closed doors. Okay?" he laughed, taking his seat again.

Christian stood up and held up his glass.

"I'll keep this short, because I was never good with words, and much better with setting people on fire. One girl in particular. Liss is the best thing that ever happened to me. Before she got dragged back to school, I was a loner. Hell, I was still a loner after that. But she slowly changed me. Now, I'm going to royal parties and managing not to burn the arrogant guys. That must say something." He placed a kiss on Lissa's cheek as she stood up and he sat down.

"When I first got with Chris, we got a lot of gossip about how disgraced we were. But we couldn't care less-we were in love. And we still are. No matter how much we argue or fall out, no matter what tries to get in our way, we're always back together in the end. There through thick and thin. Love you, Chris." She blushed and kissed him back.

Next, it was Dimitri's turn.

"When I first met Roza, she was living among humans in Portland, and had been living on the run from the academy for two years-and for good reason. We captured them and I saw from then on that she was a very determined guardian, no matter the fact that she was a novice, had an attitude, and a reputation that wasn't her at all. I started training her and we slowly fell in love, brought together by near-death experiences. The point is, she didn't die. Not then, anyway. And we're still at each other's side now. People can say our relationship was wrong, just as we thought it was, but you can't control who you love, and I love her deeply." He finished and kissed me on the lips, followed by a chorus of 'aww's. I was after him.

"I think Dimitri's pretty much said everything. I was the school student trying to get something across but couldn't, and he was the tall, dark, handsome guy who kidnapped me. He never forced me into anything. It was real love. The end," I said.

Dad was the next to talk. "Believe it or not, fairy tales do happen when you're over thirty. I know so. Those guys who get with Dhampir women then drop them give Moroi men a bad name." There were murmurs of agreement. "People will keep expecting me to leave this relationship and move on to the next girl, but I'm not going to do that-ever. You're probably wondering how a mobster met a guardian like Janine. The answer could be given a few ways, but really, I met her at a party-a ball. One of those respectable-Moroi-and-guardians things. She was lonely and I was bored. I used to think like those aforementioned guys, so I decide to have a little fun. I didn't expect to fall in love while I was at it. And boy, I fell hard." He smiled down at my mother and sat beside her again. She didn't stand, but spoke anyway.

"When I was growing up, I always had something against being with Moroi men. They would play on your emotions then throw you in the trash, I was told. I fell out with my mother because of the way she just accept how she was being used by man after man. I decided I want to be a guardian. So I did. And now look where I am. But I thought there was no way to balance personal and professional, so I avoided the former. Until I met Ibrahim. And It all changed. Now I know we're not just robots of the guardian council," she smiled. Anyone who hadn't made a speech clapped and we returned to eating the food and talking. I felt elated. Like I'd just died and gone to heaven. And I'm pretty sure my mum and Liss felt that way too.

* * *

**A/N: And that's it. :O For the copied part, of 'll be some Janine/Abe extras, a pre-wedding one-shot and a sequel named 'Vampire Academy: Sunlight'. The one-shot and some of the extras will appear on my profile in one week's time, so follow or be on the look-out if you're interested.**

**But VA:S will be a while. I've still got to edit VA:A. It'll all come in good time. If you're curious and want more info, PM me or review and I'll PM you. As for guests, you may have to wait until I poof up the info in a future A/N. Also, I can't reply to any guest reviews of this story. I'll try and answer them in A/Ns in any other part of this AU series. But, once the series dies, I might have to resort to editing the A/N of the very last chapter and hoping you see. XD Anyway, thanks for sticking with me and reading all the way through! Kudos, delicious confections and dolls of your favourite VA characters to you all! XD See you soon!**


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